By Our Correspondent

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has described the newly released 2027 manifesto of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) as a shameless repackaging of promises made in 2023, many of which remain unfulfilled.

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said the document reads like the manifesto of a new political party seeking power for the first time, rather than one that has governed Nigeria since 2015 and presided over the worst affordability crisis Nigerians have experienced under the current administration.

“The fundamental question Nigerians must ask is simple: Why is a government campaigning on promises it should already have fulfilled? President Tinubu has been in office since May 2023. The APC has controlled the Federal Government for nearly twelve years. Yet, reading this manifesto, one would think they are only now discovering the problems they were elected to solve.

“In 2023, President Tinubu promised health insurance for 40 per cent of Nigerians within two years. Today, barely one in ten Nigerians is covered, and the same target has been moved to 2031. He promised one million ICT jobs within 24 months. His government’s own figures indicate only about 15,000 jobs and opportunity pathways.

“In 2023, the APC described electricity supply of 4,500 megawatts as a crisis. Its new manifesto acknowledges average generation of just 4,022 megawatts. How does a government campaign to solve a crisis it has made remarkably worse?

“Most astonishingly, President Tinubu now promises a programme for his first 100 days after re-election, including measures he already possesses the executive powers to implement right now. What exactly is stopping him from acting today? What stopped him from acting in 2023 when he came into office?”

The ADC emphasized that Nigerians should not have to re-elect a President to get him to do the job they elected him to do four years earlier.

“Tinubu wants Nigerians to forget that poverty has risen to 63 per cent under his watch; that the N70,000 minimum wage has lost more than a quarter of its purchasing power, and that millions of families can no longer afford the basic necessities of life.

“Yet, rather than account for the hardship he has inflicted on Nigerians and his long catalogue of failures across the economy and security sectors, the president and his party have the temerity to present another colourful brochure full of the same undelivered promises.

“A manifesto is a promise of what a party will do. A record is evidence of what it has done. After eleven years, the APC cannot keep presenting promises as a substitute for performance.

“The ADC demands that President Tinubu account for every major promise he made to Nigerians in 2023 before presenting another manifesto in 2027. He must tell Nigerians, clearly and publicly, what he promised, what he delivered, what he failed to deliver, and why. He cannot simply shift the deadlines he missed, recycle the promises he broke, and expect Nigerians to reward him with another four years. The President must understand that 2027 is first a referendum on his abysmal record since 2023, not an opportunity to pretend that his presidency is just about to begin.

“Nigeria needs a change of government, not another change of slogans.”

By David Owei,Bayelsa

The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dr Dennis Brutu Otuaro, has commended the people of Warri South-West Local Government Area, Delta State, for turning out in large numbers at the campaign tour of Governor Sherrif Oborevwori to the area on Tuesday.

Dr Otuaro said the massive crowd of APC members and supporters at the rally, which was held at the Ogbe-Ijoh Grammar School compound, Ogbe-Ijoh, indicated a strong endorsement of Governor Oborevwori and President Tinubu for another term.

According to him, the residents of Warri South-West have sent a clear message that they are for the governor and the President in the 2027 general elections.

Dr Otuaro, who is a prominent indigene of Warri South-West LGA, stressed that the combined impacts of the administrations of President Tinubu and Governor Oborevwori in the council area and other parts of the state, readily informed the decision of the people to vote for them and other APC candidates.

He said the people are happy with the achievements of the two administrations in the areas of infrastructure, education, health, agriculture, employment, grassroots development, workers’ welfare, social welfare, peace and security, amongst others.

“The people of Warri South-West have spoken and made their position known that they are for President Bola Tinubu and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, who are APC candidates in the governorship and presidential elections, respectively, come 2027,” Dr Otuaro said.

“Our people have declared that it is the APC all the way in Warri South-West. They have endorsed continuity for both the president and the governor.

“They recognize that President Tinubu is strongly supporting development across Delta State. They also appreciate the commitment of Governor Oborevwori to the development of Delta in general and Warri South-West LGA in particular.

“They know that a combination of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and Governor Oborevwori’s Meaningful development, Opportunities for all, Realistic reforms, and Enhanced peace and security (M.O.R.E) Agenda is a good template of development.”

The PAP boss further noted that the people of Warri South-West LGA are confident of victory for President Tinubu and Governor Oborevwori, stressing that “they believe that with continuity, more development will come to our locality.”

He extended his profound appreciation to the leadership of the Warri South-West Local Government Area APC Campaign Council, critical stakeholders and community leaders, for engaging in structured mobilisation for the rally and the poll.

At the event, Governor Oborevwori stressed had that the huge grassroots support and political strength of the APC would engender electoral victory for President Tinubu and other party candidates in the state.

While re-assuring the people of his administration’s commitment to more development, he urged party leaders, youth and women groups, and all stakeholders to deploy the APC’s strength of unity to deliver the party at the polls.

In his remarks, the Director-General of the Delta APC Campaign Council, Senator James Manager, called on the people of Warri South-West to lead the mobilisation efforts across the state for President Tinubu, Governor Oborevwori and other party candidates.

According to him, the president and the governor deserved second term to consolidate their achievements.

In their separate remarks, the Delta South and Central APC chairmen, Emmanuel Amgbaduba and Paulinus Akpeki, expressed the optimism that the party would win and called on the residents to vote for the party’s candidates.

The state APC chairman, Solomon Arenyeka, presented party flags to the party’s candidates–Thomas Ereyitomi for the House of Representatives, Guwor Emomotimi and Andrew Igban for the Warri South-West 1 and Warri South-West 2 State Constituencies.

By Our Correspondent

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) has formally unveiled its National Campaign Council (NCC) for the 2027 General Elections, in what the party described as a decisive transition from political preparation to structured electoral engagement.

The unveiling ceremony, which drew party leaders, candidates, and supporters from across the federation, was performed by the National Chairman of the party, Prof. Sadiq Umar Abubakar Gombe, at a well-attended event in Abuja.

In his address, Prof. Gombe welcomed members of the National Working Committee, National Executive Committee, the Presidential Candidate and his Vice-Presidential Candidate, members of the Presidential Campaign Council, Gubernatorial Candidates, and candidates at all levels, as well as representatives of the party’s national, zonal, state, local government and ward structures.

He said the event marked the beginning of a coordinated national effort to strengthen the party, consolidate its structures, mobilize supporters, and position the SDP for electoral success across the country.

Prof. Gombe described the 2027 General Elections as a defining moment in the political history of Nigeria.

According to him, the nation stands at a critical crossroads, confronted by insecurity, economic hardship, unemployment, poverty, institutional weaknesses, and declining public confidence in governance.

“Nigerians are yearning for purposeful leadership, economic opportunities, social justice, security, accountability and a government that places the welfare and dignity of its citizens above every other consideration,” he said.

He declared that the SDP believes Nigeria deserves better, and is determined to offer Nigerians a credible democratic alternative founded on social justice, equity, freedom, inclusive development and good governance.

Explaining the structure of the new Council, the National Chairman said the NCC was designed to bring together the institutional campaign structures of the party and the campaign structures of the Presidential Candidate into one coordinated, disciplined and results-oriented electoral framework.

The comprehensive campaign architecture, he said, shall comprise National, Zonal, State, Local Government, Ward and Polling Unit structures, incorporating both the party’s campaign organization and the Presidential Candidate’s campaign organization at all levels.

“Our ambition is not simply to establish campaign committees on paper. We must build functional, disciplined and accountable structures with clearly defined responsibilities, effective communication channels and measurable results,” Prof. Gombe said.

He stressed that every component of the machinery must work in harmony towards the collective objective of securing electoral victory for the SDP at all levels in 2027.

The SDP Chairman emphasized that the quest for electoral victory must be pursued through lawful, peaceful and democratic means.

He said the campaign must be issue-based, people-centered and firmly rooted in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Electoral Act, INEC Guidelines and the party constitution.

“We must earn the confidence of Nigerians through credible engagement, persuasion, effective organization and practical policy alternatives. We must reject violence, intimidation, electoral malpractice and every conduct capable of undermining the integrity of our democracy,” he warned.

In what he described as one of the remarkable achievements of the party, Prof. Gombe announced that the SDP stands out as the only political party with a comprehensive manifesto outlining its vision, policies and programmes for the Nigerian people.

Beyond developing the manifesto, he said the party has translated it into all the major spoken languages in Nigeria to ensure its message is accessible to citizens across linguistic, cultural and geographical boundaries.

Furthermore, the party has produced audio versions of the manifesto, which are currently being transmitted across 109 radio stations covering all 109 Senatorial Districts in the country.

“This unprecedented nationwide communication initiative demonstrates our commitment to inclusive political participation and our determination to ensure that every Nigerian, regardless of educational background, language or location, has the opportunity to understand our vision,” he said.

“We believe that leadership must communicate with the people in languages they understand, reach communities where they live and make its policies accessible to everyone.”

Prof. Gombe also spoke on the broader responsibility of the SDP to defend and strengthen Nigeria’s democracy.

He disclosed that the party is actively working in coalition with other progressive opposition political parties and democratic stakeholders to promote an electoral environment that guarantees credible, free, fair and transparent elections in 2027.

He said the collective efforts are directed towards protecting the independence and credibility of electoral institutions, strengthening electoral safeguards, promoting transparency, preventing electoral malpractice and ensuring that the freely expressed will of the Nigerian people is respected.

He added that the credibility of the 2027 elections goes beyond Nigeria’s domestic interests, noting that Nigeria occupies a strategic position in Africa and the wider international community.

“Millions of Africans and people of African descent across the world look towards Nigeria for democratic leadership, inspiration and a renewed demonstration that a nation of black people can build strong institutions, protect democratic freedoms and guarantee the dignity and future of its citizens in the 21st century,” he said.

Addressing candidates, Prof. Gombe urged the Presidential Candidate and all candidates at different levels to see the campaign structure as a common platform for collaboration, mutual support and collective success.

“Our political ambitions must complement one another rather than compete against one another. The success of our Presidential Candidate must reinforce the success of our candidates for the National Assembly, Governorship, State Houses of Assembly and Local Government elections,” he said.

To members of the National Campaign Council, he charged them to approach the assignment with patriotism, discipline, integrity and an unshakable sense of responsibility.

“Let every committee deliver on its mandate, every coordinator remain accountable, and every campaign activity reflect the ideals and character of our great party,” he said.

He also called on youth and women, who he described as an indispensable force in political and democratic development, to take their rightful positions in the historic assignment.

To party members and supporters, he said the task ahead requires sacrifice, perseverance and unity.

“We must take the SDP message to every community, engage citizens respectfully, listen to their concerns and demonstrate through our conduct that we are worthy of their trust,” he said.

In his closing remarks, Prof. Gombe said history does not reward those who merely recognise the need for change, but those who organise, prepare and work diligently to make change possible.

“Our mission is clear: to build a strong, united and nationwide political organisation capable of delivering electoral success for the Social Democratic Party at all levels in the 2027 General Elections, while contributing to the preservation and strengthening of Nigeria’s democracy,” he said.

He then formally unveiled the SDP National Campaign Council for the 2027 General Elections, comprising the party’s campaign structures and the campaign structures of the Presidential Candidate across the National, Zonal, State, Local Government, Ward and Polling Unit levels.

He charged all members of the Council to commence their responsibilities with immediate effect.

“May this unveiling mark the beginning of a new chapter of political organisation, democratic responsibility and national renewal. Together, we can build a stronger SDP, strengthen our democracy and work towards a better Nigeria,” he said.

He concluded: “Thank you, and may God bless the Social Democratic Party and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”