This ADC Thing -By Ike Willie-Nwobu

For all it is worth, the coalition converging under the auspices of the African Democratic Alliance (ADC) seems bent on shaking up things, which is no bad idea in a country crying out for direction.

As the 2027 elections approach, former political foes are finding common ground just in time. Political alliances are aligning, and calculations are thickening as to who will get what change out of the elections.

For the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the boost has been as welcome as it is unexpected. Improbably, it has become the centerpiece of a coalition desperate to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. If the presidency and the ruling APC appear concerned, it is because they have been there before but maybe not quite.

In 2014, as President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan prepared for another stint in office, the major opposition political parties in Nigeria at the time forged an unlikely alliance. The result was a historic upset that yielded eight years in power for Muhammadu Buhari. Buhari’s exit from politics in 2023 saw the ascension of Bola Tinubu to continue APC’s hegemomy of political power in Nigeria.

While it doesn’t look like the APC is about to relinquish power anytime soon, there is a deep and deepening rumble of discontent among Nigerians. This discontent, dented by its diversity and ferocity, has cut across every corner of Nigeria, touching vast swathes of the country and poses the greatest threat to the current administration.

In 2027, beyond any coalition, beyond any calculation, even beyond any capitulation, it does appear that just as was the case in 2015, Nigerians will stand before the ballot box poised with their votes to register their discontent with those who have held the reins of power in the country for the last decade.
The alliance may be a handful of sore losers and nearly rans who are clearly desperate to get back into the big time, but it may just present Nigerians with a perfect opportunity to pay back the APC in its coin of betrayal.
It Is bitterly disappointing that the APC is yet to repay the trust reposed in it by Nigerians in 2015. In deed, the way and manner some of those elected on the platform of the party have performed in office shows a mocking disregard for Nigerians and their feelings. In this wise, the 2027 elections promise to be a titanic battle. The politicians now pooling into the coalition may be disgruntled, but they are by no means spent political forces. Many of them are veteran politicians, seasoned in the art of political warfare, who still have their structures in place and vast swaths of supporters who will support them until the death.

Once party primaries begin, the coalition will also experience a swell as a result of more disgruntled politicians leaving their political parties. This means that the coalition may get some change, especially out of the ruling APC using the same tactics of divide and rule that the APC deployed to wrest power from the PDP in 2015.

Whatever happens, Nigerians deserve a break. The beauty of democracy and elections is in change. The greatest incentive for office holders in a democracy to put the people first while relegating their personal interests comes from the knowledge that the voters can enliven or kill their political careers at the polls.

Given everything that has been said about the APC since the party assumed power in 2015, the time seems ripe for a change. ADC may be the greatest opportunity for that change. Nigeria’s democracy may well depend on it.

Ike Willie-Nwobu,
Ikewilly9@gmail.com