President Bola Tinubu. Photo: State House
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Osun State, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has cautioned the David Mark-led leadership of the African Democratic Congress against spreading untrue stories against President Bola Tinubu.
Oyintiloye, in a statement obtained in Osogbo on Monday, expressed concerns over accusations against Tinubu regarding the crises ravaging ADC, saying the delisted ADC leadership “must be courageous enough to tell Nigerians the truth, rather than tag Tinubu as being responsible for the crisis within the party.”
The ex-lawmaker said Tinubu is the Nigerian President, and not a court of law that directed the ADC to revert to “its pre-merger executives,” pending the determination of a case at the Federal High Court, instituted by a member of the party.
“I will advise the ADC to put its house in order and stop blaming Tinubu for its crisis. The President is a true democrat and does not need to destabilise any party to secure re-election in 2027.
“Tinubu is not a member of the Court of Appeal that delivered the judgment, nor does he have the time to poke his nose into unnecessary political matters. If the ADC is looking for anyone to blame, targeting Tinubu is a miscalculated move,” Oyintiloye said.
He further stated that the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission not to recognise any faction of the ADC until all litigations are resolved was neither its doing nor Tinubu’s fault, but was made in respect of a court’s ruling.
“My candid advice to the ADC is to look inward and resolve its internal crisis rather than engaging in a blame game,” he added.
He counselled politicians to play by the rules and to avoid acts that may later become their albatross, saying that greater awareness among today’s politicians will make them challenge every illegality before the court.
According to him, “resorting to blackmail will not save ADC,” and advised the party to return to the drawing board and restrategize if it wants Nigerians to recognise it as a force within the nation’s political space.
Addressing allegations that Nigeria is drifting toward a one-party system, Oyintiloye maintained that there are 21 recognised political parties registered by INEC.
“We have 21 registered political parties in the country, and the majority—if not all—will participate in the 2027 elections. With these 21 political parties, including the ADC, how can the country be described as a one-party state?
“Opposition leaders should stop spreading false and unsubstantiated information about the 2027 general elections and focus on resolving their internal crises,” he said.
He added that no amount of campaign of calumny would prevent the President from securing a landslide victory in the 2027 elections.
The Punch
