ADC ‘ll Rescue Nigeria from Current Occupiers, Say Aregbesola, Others

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo and Hammed Shittu in Ilorin

The National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rauf Aregbesola, has called on Nigerians to join the party in rebuilding Nigeria.

Similarly, some political stakeholders in Kwara state including a former governorship aspirant of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in state, Associate Professor Abdulmumin Yinka Ajia, yesterday in Ilorin, said that the new ADC is a strategic move by the opposition group to salvage the country from imminent collapse. They spoke on the sideline of his second annual colloquium.

Aregbesola noted that ADC is ready to rescue Nigeria from the current occupiers who have taken it backward, adding that the party is built on substance, service, and trust.

The former two-term governor of Osun State affirmed that while obstacles are inevitable, they will not derail the party’s focused drive to offer Nigerians a credible, people-first alternative in the 2027 general election.

Addressing ADC members and loyalists who came out in large numbers to welcome him to Osogbo, the Osun State capital, Aregbesola emphasized that the ADC’s mission provide a viable alternative with a leadership that listens, serves, and delivers.

According to him, “We are not here to trade insults. We are here to restore what has been lost-dignity, competence, and direction.”

Aregbesola warned that the All Progressives Congress (APC) would use every tool including misinformation, media manipulation, and coordinated attacks to distract, discredit, or divide the ADC.

He, however, said the party would remain focused on its mission and will continue engaging Nigerians across the country to shape a better path forward.

The former governor assured party members that the ADC is open to all Nigerians who believe in a future driven by competence, inclusion, and compassion.

“This party is for everyone. We welcome you, not as enemies of others, but as Nigerians determined to chart a better path forward.

“We know the game-distractions, smears, provocations. But we will not play it.

“We are on a mission, and we will stay focused, building quietly, consistently, and with conviction,” he said.

He reiterated that the ADC’s strategy is rooted in the progressive philosophy that once transformed the Western Region, “a philosophy that delivered even in the worst of times.

“We used those same principles in Osun State to navigate the worst economic crisis in Nigeria’s history — and still delivered measurable progress. This is what Nigeria needs now: grounded, proven, and people-driven.

“We are stepping into a new chapter-one of responsibility, restoration, and meaningful results. The struggles of the past were not in vain. They’ve prepared us to lead with clarity and conviction. The best of what we have to offer is still ahead.”

Aregbesola, while advising ADC members not to be baited into unnecessary conflict or distractions, affirmed that: “This is our finest hour.

“Let them throw insults. We will offer answers. Let others fight, we will build.”

On Nigeria’s current condition, Aregbesola highlighted rising poverty, insecurity, and disillusionment, noting that the country has gone backward.

“From every corner of the country, the people are asking: ‘Is this the future we were promised?’ And the painful truth is- things have gotten worse.

“Nigerians are not asking for miracles. They are asking for leadership that puts the people first and delivers real, measurable results,” the former minister stated.

Aregbesola reflected on the true meaning of leadership, emphasising that it must be rooted in service, not self-interest.

“Power is not a prize to seize, but a duty to serve. Not a throne to occupy, but a burden to bear with honour. True leadership gives more than it takes. That is our covenant: power is responsibility,” he stated.

He added that Nigeria can still rise, but only if leadership puts people before power and service before self, adding: “That is the future the ADC is fighting for.”

Aregbesola concluded by invoking the legacy of progressive icons like Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Chief Bola Ige, and Chief Adekunle Ajasin, “leaders who governed with vision, courage, and integrity.

“This is the legacy we inherit. But more importantly, it is the future we must build. Let us rise to the moment with discipline, courage, and faith in the Nigerian people.”

Meanwhile, some political stakeholders in Kwara State have said that the new ADC is a strategic move by the opposition group to salvage the country from imminent collapse.

The stakeholders, including a former governorship aspirant of the ruling APC in Kwara state, Associate Professor Abdulmumin Yinka Ajia, stated this in Ilorin yesterday on the sideline of his second annual colloquium.

He stated that ADC is good enough as a credible coalition platform for the opposition.

According to him, “It is only a strong opposition, free of direct and indirect influence from the ruling party, that can wrest Nigeria from what can be called an irony of a collapsing rich nation”.

Ajia said that, ADC and other allied platforms symbolise more than party politics: “they are instruments of democratic restoration, vehicles of civic renewal, and tools to return power to the people.

Speaking on the theme of the colloquium: “Interrogating the Nigerian State, Its Democratic Institutions, and the Looming Threats of State Capture,” Ajia said: “Their emergence is a reminder that democratic expansion and renewal is not only possible, but also already underway”.

“The colloquium stands in solidarity with all efforts, formal and informal, aimed at rebuilding the Nigerian State into a truly accountable, inclusive, and citizen-serving republic.

“This forum captures the urgency of our times, explained the essence of the platform as beyond an intellectual forum but as a civic duty, an annual call to interrogate power, demand reform, and reawaken the democratic spirit among citizens, thinkers, and change makers,” he said.

In his presentation, the leader of “O to Ge” political movement that challenged and ousted the Saraki political movement in 2019, Akogun Iyiola Oyedepo, urged Nigerians to erect new virtues and values in the country.

As an agitator, he posited that Nigeria has not really benefited from the ongoing democracy, saying: “26 years of democracy has not substantially taken us far from dictatorship in content, if not in form.

“The structure built by the founding fathers has completely collapsed. We need new founding fathers with new values, new structure and new national purpose.”

The National Coordinator of Obidients’ Movement, Tanko Yunusa, who eulogised the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), called for political awareness among Nigerians.

Speaking in the same vein, the state chairman/coordinator of Civil Society Organisations (CSO) on Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Antonio Oshinewe, listed various challenges generally confronting the judiciary, suggesting solutions to them.