Defeat awaits despite INEC as ADC youths warn Tinubu against manipulation
Ahead of the planned replacement of the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu in December, the aggrieved youths of the coalition movement, African Democratic Congress (ADC), have issued a warning to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu against any ploy to manipulate he due processes on appointing a replacement, swearing to defeat him in the next presidential election even if he chose to appoint his media adviser, Bayo Ononuga, as the new umpire of the commission.
The youths, who expressed their anger on Tuesday in Abuja under the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), noted that the president had no chance of winning the next election as they would be all-out against him.
Defeat Awaits Despite INEC
While expressing their frustration, the youths said they were tired of being passive in the affairs of the nation, and that they were ready to decode whatever strategy or method used by the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) to suppress the will of the people.
In attendance of those who expressed their views were the National Coordinator of the group, Mrs. Ruqayya Lamido Dodo; the group’s Director General Murtala Haliru Dantoro, Joshua Nweke Aniomo among others.
“Politics is about numbers. They can bring as much money they have but we are going to beat them silly in 2027.
“We saw Onanuga asking how market. The waters have been tested. We have other elections coming up and that is when they will know how market is because it is going to be fire for fire.
“On INEC, if Tinubu so wishes, he can make Bayo Onanuga the chairman but we in ADC, come 2027, we will make INEC do the needful. We have had enough.
“We are going to defend our votes from the polling units to the final collation centre. They can bring trillions of Naira. We are going to collect the money but we will vote ADC.
“If the president is going to chose the next INEC chairman, he should put Nigeria first. Someone who has integrity and who has the interest of Nigeria first and not given to primordial or partisan interests”, they declared.
Defeat Awaits Despite INEC
Reflecting own thoughts on whether the results of last Saturday’s bye-election was a true reflection of the strength of the ADC, the Director General of the youth section of the party (ADYC), Murtala Haliru Dantoro stated that the elections had no way to represent the strength of the party, but a show of shame.
He said; “It is important that people know that vote buying is criminal. What happened in my state, Niger, was heartbreaking. To be in a country whereby we cannot make decisions. Our decisions are baseless.
“We will love to see leaders who will allow our people decide freely during elections. There is no greatness in forcing yourself on the people.
“In Niger, they were paying people for as low as N2,000. I don’t know who said they should do that or who asked them to do that but we want the president to take note. It is unfortunate what happened but we pray Nigeria gets better.
Defeat Awaits Despite INEC
“Our message is simple: We refuse to inherit a broken system. We are here to fix it with the strength of unity. We are not just a youth wing; we are the driving force of the ideologies of the Coalition party, African Democratic Congress ADC, and the future of this nation.
“Despite the difficulties we are facing, we have to rise and be part of our country’s electoral system. Let us join the Coalition party ADC, let’s vote right.
“We must understand that vote buying is not merely a transaction; it is a betrayal of our collective future”.
On the other hand of the discussion, Mrs. Dodo said that the contemporary generation is tired of being passive in their country and want a change.
“For decades, we have heard the same tired promises. We have been called the ‘leaders of tomorrow’, a phrase that has become little more than a polite way to sideline us from today’s critical decisions.
“Our generation is tired of being spectators in a nation that belongs to us. We are tired of seeing our potentials wasted, our voices ignored, and our future held hostage by a political system that has failed us repeatedly.
Defeat Awaits Despite INEC
“Today, we are here to declare that the African Democratic Youth Congress, the ADYC, is changing that narrative. We are not just a youth wing; we are the vanguard of a new movement. We are not waiting for tomorrow; we are building our nation today. We are the architects of a new Nigeria.
“The ADYC is the engine room of the African Democratic Congress ADC. Our mandate is simple but profound: to re-engineer Nigeria’s political landscape by championing the core values of transparency, accountability, and radical inclusion”, she added.
The youth of the party claimed that their mission is to build a nationwide movement, one that can be in every state of the federation, including in all local governments and communities.
“We are not interested in a top-down approach. Our strategy is to mobilise from the grassroots up, which we have done and are still doing, empowering young people in their communities to become agents of change.
Defeat Awaits Despite INEC
“We are setting up local chapters and organizing community development projects that tackle real-world problems. We are using both traditional outreach and modern digital tools to ensure that our message of hope and action reaches every young.”
