The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has rejected claims by the All Progressives Congress (APC) that serving or prospective ADC House of Assembly candidates from Jigawa, Plateau, Taraba and Zamfara States defected to the ruling party.

In a statement signed by the ADC National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party described the APC’s announcement as inaccurate and said the individuals presented as ADC defectors were not recognised by the party as its candidates or leaders.

According to the ADC, the individuals recently presented at the APC secretariat did not hold the ADC positions or represent the constituencies attributed to them.

“The APC cannot assemble random individuals at its secretariat, confer imaginary ADC credentials on them and then announce their defection,” Abdullahi said.

He added that while the APC leadership was free to receive visitors at its offices, it should not present people to the Nigerian public as ADC officials or candidates unless their identities and party positions could be substantiated.

ADC Challenges APC to Verify Defectors’ Credentials

The ADC called on the APC to provide specific details concerning the individuals it identified as former ADC members, including the offices they allegedly held within the party and the constituencies they reportedly represented.

The party specifically challenged the APC to state:

• The ADC positions allegedly held by the individuals;
• The constituencies they reportedly contested or represented on the ADC platform; and
• The dates and circumstances under which they held those positions.

The ADC said these details would help establish whether the individuals announced by the APC had any formal connection to the party.

ADC Questions Claims on Development in Northern Nigeria

The party also disputed the APC’s suggestion that the alleged defectors were motivated by what the ruling party described as the administration’s transformation of Northern Nigeria.

Abdullahi argued that political claims about development should be accompanied by evidence of tangible improvements in the lives of citizens, including food affordability, community safety and household economic conditions.

“Having invented ADC credentials for its guests, the APC has supplied an equally imaginative account of its performance over the past few years,” he said.

The ADC further argued that political publicity should not substitute for measurable evidence of improved living conditions, and called for greater focus on issues affecting households and communities across the country.

ADC Calls for Evidence

The ADC concluded by challenging the APC to substantiate the identities and party credentials of those it presented as former ADC members.

“The APC should state the ADC offices these individuals supposedly held, the constituencies they represented as our candidates and when they held those positions,” the statement said.