The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has warned that Nigeria risks drifting towards a one-party state following a series of legal and political developments affecting opposition parties, describing the recent court ruling against the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) as part of a troubling pattern that could undermine democratic competition ahead of the 2027 elections.
In a statement issued on Saturday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said the Federal High Court judgment in Lokoja setting aside its earlier ruling recognising the NDC extends beyond a dispute involving a single political party and raises broader questions about the future of Nigeria’s multiparty democracy.
According to the ADC, repeated legal challenges confronting opposition parties have created growing concerns that democratic space is being systematically narrowed in favour of those already in power.
“The cumulative effect of these attacks is unmistakable: they weaken the opposition, narrow the democratic space, and strengthen the hands of those already in power. This is not how a healthy democracy functions,” the party stated.
The opposition party argued that the controversy surrounding the NDC reflects a wider trend in which opposition platforms are increasingly forced to expend energy on legal battles and internal disputes instead of offering policy alternatives and electoral choices to Nigerians.
“When opposition parties are persistently distracted by manufactured controversies and prolonged legal uncertainty, the real casualty is the Nigerian people’s right to freely choose among credible political alternatives,” the statement added.
The ADC further accused the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of fostering conditions that undermine fair political competition, insisting that democratic governance can only thrive where institutions operate impartially and all political actors enjoy equal protection under the law.
With less than a year to the next general election, the party called on the judiciary to safeguard its independence and avoid actions that could erode public confidence in the electoral process.
“The judiciary remains one of the last lines of defence for our democracy and must never be perceived as an arena where political battles are settled on behalf of those who wield executive power. Justice must not only be done; it must be seen to be done,” Abdullahi said.
The ADC also appealed to opposition parties, civil society organisations, labour unions, legal practitioners, media organisations and citizens to unite in defence of democratic institutions, warning that the consequences of political exclusion would ultimately affect the entire democratic system.
“Yesterday’s target was the NDC. Tomorrow, it could be anyone who dares to offer Nigerians an alternative. We must not wait until the democratic space has been completely suffocated before we act,” the statement said.
Reaffirming its commitment to multiparty democracy, the party pledged to continue resisting what it described as attempts to weaken opposition politics, maintaining that constitutional rights to political participation, freedom of association and electoral choice must remain protected regardless of partisan interests.
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