By Achile Danjuma
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has sharply condemned reports that governors elected on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform diverted funds from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) to finance President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign.
In a statement issued Tuesday and signed by National Publicity Secretary Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the opposition party described the alleged action as “shameless, cruel, and criminal” — particularly as millions of Nigerians face deepening poverty, hunger, and hopelessness stemming from what the ADC called the ruling party’s “bad policies.”
The party said the report, which alleges that over N800 billion was raised through deductions from FAAC allocations for political purposes, confirms what Nigerians have long suspected.
“The same government that told Nigerians there is no money to reduce suffering somehow found a way to allegedly mobilise over N800 billion for politics,” the statement read. “The same government asking citizens to endure sacrifice is allegedly supervising one of the largest political funding operations in Nigeria’s democratic history. This is not leadership. This is exploitation.”
The ADC further argued that it is morally indefensible for state governments receiving record-breaking allocations to fail in improving citizens’ lives while allegedly diverting money to fund the President’s re-election ambitions.
“Under this APC government, states are receiving more money than at any other period in Nigeria’s history, yet Nigerians are poorer, hungrier, and more desperate than ever before,” the party said. “Roads are still collapsing. Hospitals are still empty. Schools are still underfunded. Workers are underpaid. Communities remain unsafe. The only thing growing is the political appetite of the ruling party.”
The ADC called for an immediate independent investigation into the allegations, including the reported use of FAAC deductions and any related accounts or structures allegedly linked to the operation.
“If these allegations are true, then this represents a dangerous abuse of public trust and a scandal of enormous national consequence,” the party concluded. “You cannot impoverish the people to fund your own re-election. Nigerians are not blind. Nigerians are not fools. And Nigerians will remember.”