Atiku Accuses APC Presidential Campaign of Obscuring President’s Unfulfilled Promises

·    ADC council says ruling party’s sustained assault on democracy will fail

 Chuks Okocha in Abuja

President candidate of African Democratic Congress (ADC) and former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has accused the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council of seeking to obscure President Bola Tinubu’s unfulfilled electricity promise with a long recital of laws, committees, bonds, and projects.

Atiku made the accusation in a statement by Director of Strategic Communication, ADC Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC), Phrank Shaibu.

Separately, ADC-PCC condemned what it called sustained, coordinated, and state-sponsored assault on democracy, freedom of association, and the constitutional right of Nigerians to political participation under the Tinubu administration. It, however, declared that the assaults would fail and democracy was bound to survive and outlive APC.

Atiku said, in the statement by ADC-PCC, “The APC should spare Nigerians the spectacle of celebrating paperwork while homes and businesses remain in darkness.

“After three and a half years, families still struggle to keep their homes lit. Traders and small business owners spend scarce resources on alternative power, yet struggle to keep their businesses alive.”

ADC campaign council said, “Nigerians are billed for electricity they cannot rely on. President Tinubu promised steady power and an end to estimated billing. That promise has not been kept.

“Across Nigeria, consumers are placed in Bands A, B, C, D and E and charged different rates. In many areas, Band A customers pay about N209.50 per unit before VAT. Rates for the other bands vary by state and electricity provider.

”Yet across every band, the same hardship endures: the power fails, but the bill arrives. No family should have to weigh the cost of electricity against the cost of food. No business should be left to pay more while receiving less.”

ADC added, “The government now says it plans to end electricity subsidies from 2027, even as it insists there will be no immediate tariff increase. Nigerians are entitled to a clear answer: what will happen to their bills when the subsidy ends?”

The ADC presidential candidate promised that if elected, “I will work with state governments and regulators, within the law, to abolish the present band system and replace it with a fair, transparent and affordable framework that protects households and holds power companies accountable for the electricity they deliver.

“Steady power that Nigerians can afford will be a national priority.”

Insisting that Tinubu had no justification for seeking another term, the ADC campaign council stated, “When President Tinubu campaigned in 2022, he made an unmistakable commitment. He said: ‘If I don’t give you constant electricity for four years, when I come back for a second term, don’t vote for me.’

“Nigerians have lived through those four years. They do not need his campaign council to interpret his words for them. They need him to answer for them.

“His administration has not built a single new generation infrastructure of its own to increase Nigeria’s power capacity. Yet it has floated a multitrillion naira bond programme to settle legacy debts owed to generation companies, without showing Nigerians how this financial intervention has produced the steady electricity they were promised.

”Paying old debts is not the same as building new power infrastructure. Bonds cannot be presented as a substitute for power in people’s homes.”

ADC also accused the Tinubu government of worsening the power woes with unjustifiable energy taxes.

It stated, “Meanwhile, Nigerians face VAT on electricity, and the Nigeria Tax Act provides for a five per cent surcharge on certain fossil fuels, including petrol and diesel.

“The government says the surcharge has not been activated and would require a ministerial order. At a time when families already struggle to meet the cost of energy, Nigerians deserve to know why another potential charge has been placed before them.

“Dele Alake’s statement cannot light a home. Signing a law is not electricity. Raising a bond is not electricity. Approving a project is not power delivered. Nigerians cannot cook, study, work or sustain a business on announcements.

”President Tinubu invited Nigerians to judge him by his performance. They have done so. What they seek is simple: reliable electricity they can afford, and a government that keeps its word.”

APC’s Sustained Assault On Democracy Will Fail, Says ADC Presidential Campaign

ADC-PCC condemned what it described as organised assault on democracy and freedom of association and political participation under the administration of Tinubu, declaring that the assaults will fail, as democracy will outlive APC.

The council said the unfolding incidents across the country went beyond ordinary political rivalry. It alleged that the incidents represented a disturbing pattern of intimidation, harassment, and suppression of opposition voices.

The council said the Tinubu government had engaged in calculated atrocious actions skewed to scare Nigerians ahead of the general election.

In a statement signed by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, ADC-PCC recalled a series of incidents, including attacks on its leaders and members in Kaduna, the reported assault on its Sokoto State governorship candidate, Alhaji Munir Dan Iya, by operatives of the Sokoto Marshals along Airport Road, Sokoto, and alleged attacks on other opposition figures.

It also cited the reported demolition of its governorship campaign office in Kebbi State and the alleged denial of a campaign venue in Enugu State to Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi.

The council further referenced the reported attacks on the presidential candidate of African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, and other opposition voices, describing the incidents as part of an emerging pattern of political intolerance.

According to ADC-PCC, the attacks, denial of campaign venues, arrests, harassment, and intimidation of opposition figures raised serious concerns about the state of democratic freedoms and political pluralism in Nigeria.

The council maintained that no government, regardless of its political or institutional strength, could successfully suppress the democratic aspirations of Nigerians, recalling that popular resistance contributed to the collapse of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s third-term agenda.

It also stated that Tinubu and APC enjoyed the benefits of political participation and opposition politics when they were outside government, insisting that those same democratic freedoms must be guaranteed to all political parties and their members.

Sharing Atiku’s thoughts, ADC-PCC also described as an afterthought the attempt by Alake and APC-PCC to rewrite Tinubu’s categorical 2023 electricity pledge through selective quotations and elaborate explanations.

Reacting to comments by Alake, Ologbondiyan maintained that Tinubu was unequivocal when he told Nigerians not to vote for him for a second term if he failed to deliver electricity during his first tenure.

According to ADC-PCC, Nigerians have not forgotten the president’s words. His commitment was clear and unambiguous: “Don’t vote for me for second term if I fail to deliver electricity.”

The council said no amount of selective editing, additional paragraphs, or grammatical gymnastics could erase that commitment from the consciousness of Nigerians.

It said rather than end estimated billing, the Tinubu administration had presided over increased electricity bills, leaving many households struggling to afford power supply.

ADC-PCC further observed that businesses, including hospitality facilities, had been forced to ration electricity by switching off power for guests during daytime hours to contain operating costs.

It also criticised the introduction of discriminatory tariff classifications under Bands A, B, C and others, stating that consumers continue to pay more without receiving reliable electricity supply.