The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of using propaganda to distract Nigerians from the failures of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, following allegations that the opposition party owes its staff more than 12 months’ salaries.

In a press statement dated October 26, 2026, and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC described the allegations by the APC Presidential Campaign Council as an “irresponsible falsehood” and an attempt to divert attention from the country’s economic challenges.

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The controversy began after the APC Presidential Campaign Council, through its spokesperson, Dele Alake, accused the ADC’s National Working Committee, led by Senator David Mark as national chairman and Rauf Aregbesola as national secretary, of failing to pay party workers for more than a year.

According to the statement, the APC described the alleged non-payment of salaries as “wicked and reprehensible”, arguing that a party seeking to govern Nigeria should be able to meet its obligations to its workforce.

“We find it unconscionable that a political party that has made many grandiose promises to hoodwink Nigerians owes its workers for more than 12 months,” Alake said.

The APC campaign council also accused former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, whom it identified as the ADC’s presidential candidate, of having a history of owing employees at businesses associated with him, including Gotel Communication.

Alake further criticised Aregbesola’s record on workers’ salaries and pension payments during his eight-year tenure as governor of Osun State.

The council alleged that Aregbesola’s administration introduced quarter-salary and, at times, half-salary payments for workers, while pensioners allegedly went for more than four years without receiving their entitlements.

Based on these allegations, the APC campaign council urged Nigerians to reject the ADC, Atiku and other candidates of the party in the 2027 general elections, arguing that a party unable to manage its workforce should not be entrusted with the country’s affairs.

Responding to the allegations, the ADC dismissed the APC’s claims as an attempt to mislead Nigerians and divert attention from the performance of the Tinubu administration.

“We find it rather amusing that a government that has presided over one of the most painful periods of economic hardship in our country’s recent history now considers itself qualified to lecture anyone about the welfare of workers,” the statement read.

The opposition party argued that the ruling party was making allegations against its political opponents because it lacked achievements to defend.

“When a government has no achievements to defend, it must manufacture allegations to discuss,” it added.

Rejecting the allegation of unpaid salaries, the ADC challenged the APC to provide evidence to support its claims.

“The ADC categorically rejects this allegation as an irresponsible falsehood, deliberately concocted to mislead Nigerians and distract attention from the monumental failures of the Tinubu administration. If the APC has any credible evidence to support its claims, it should produce it rather than continue to insult Nigerians with fabricated stories masquerading as press statements,” the statement said.

The ADC maintained that the allegations against it were an attempt by the ruling party to shift public attention away from the challenges facing Nigerians.

According to the party, the country’s major concerns include the rising cost of living, unemployment among young people and insecurity affecting lives, livelihoods and communities.

“The real issue is not the imaginary crisis that the APC is desperately trying to manufacture within the ADC. The real issue is the crisis that President Bola Tinubu and his government have created in the homes of millions of Nigerians,” the statement read.

“The real issue is the cost of living. The real issue is the absence of jobs and opportunities for our young people. The real issue is the insecurity that continues to threaten lives, livelihoods, and communities across the country.”

The opposition party said these were the issues on which the Tinubu administration should be judged, insisting that allegations against political opponents could not erase the government’s record.

The ADC also accused the APC of concentrating on allegations against opposition parties instead of presenting its achievements ahead of the 2027 general elections.

“It is becoming increasingly clear that the APC has decided to run its 2027 campaign on allegations against the opposition rather than achievements of its own. That is what happens when a government has spent years making promises it cannot keep and excuses it cannot defend,” the statement said.

The party advised Alake and his colleagues to focus on explaining why Nigerians should support the ruling party for another term, given what it described as the hardship, insecurity and economic uncertainty experienced over the past three years.

It further argued that although the APC controls the machinery of government, it cannot control the daily experiences of Nigerians.

“The APC may control the machinery of government, but it cannot control the lived experiences of Nigerians. And no amount of propaganda targeted at the opposition can erase the monumental record of the ruling APC,” the statement added.

The ADC said the cost of living would remain a central issue in its engagement with the Tinubu administration, adding that it would not be distracted by allegations against the party.

“This election is about one issue only: the cost of living that the Tinubu administration has pushed beyond the reach of the majority of Nigerians. The ADC will stay focused on this issue. We will not be distracted. We will continue to hold this government accountable on the issues that matter to Nigerians,” the statement read.

The party concluded by challenging the APC to defend its record and present solutions to the country’s challenges rather than make allegations against the opposition.

“If the APC has a record to defend, let it defend it. If it has solutions, let it present them. But it should stop insulting the intelligence of Nigerians with these increasingly desperate distractions,” Abdullahi said.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) Presidential Campaign Council has challenged Vice-President Kashim Shettima to address questions surrounding President Bola Tinubu’s academic records following his criticism of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s educational background.

The council’s Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, made the challenge in a statement on Monday, October 26, 2026, following Shettima’s remarks at the 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja.

Shaibu accused Shettima of mocking Atiku for attending the Kano School of Hygiene instead of addressing the economic challenges facing Nigerians, including rising food prices, transportation costs and fuel prices.

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“While Shettima debates school records, families are skipping meals, workers cannot afford the journey to work, and his government calls their suffering reform,” Shaibu said.

He questioned why Atiku’s educational background had become a subject of ridicule, arguing that the former Vice-President had pursued further training and built his career through work.

“What, exactly, is shameful about Atiku’s education? He completed secondary school, pursued further training and built a life through work. Millions of Nigerians have travelled the same road,” he said.

According to Shaibu, many Nigerians have worked hard to obtain education and improve their lives despite financial challenges, adding that Atiku’s educational journey should not be used to ridicule him.

ADC Raises Questions About Tinubu’s Academic Records

Turning the criticism towards Tinubu, Shaibu challenged Shettima to explain an alleged discrepancy involving the President’s educational history.

He claimed that a document associated with Tinubu’s Chicago State University records listed Government College Lagos as a school he graduated from in 1970, four years before the institution was established in 1974.

“If Shettima wants to examine school records, he should begin with the man he serves,” Shaibu said.

He added that the Vice-President should explain the alleged discrepancy rather than mock Atiku for attending an institution that existed when he studied there.

Shaibu also questioned the name “Tinubu Bola Adekunle,” which he said appeared on the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate submitted by the President to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

He noted that Atiku had challenged the discrepancy in court and argued that questions concerning Tinubu’s documents deserved answers.

The ADC spokesman further referenced Tinubu’s Chicago State University documents and a 1993 forfeiture proceeding in Chicago arising from a narcotics investigation, describing the issues as matters of public interest.

The claims were presented by Shaibu as part of his criticism of the President and Vice-President. They should not be interpreted as independent findings of wrongdoing.

ADC Accuses Shettima of Ignoring Economic Hardship

Shaibu also criticised the Federal Government over the economic difficulties confronting Nigerians, arguing that the administration should focus on addressing the rising cost of living.

He cited poverty and food insecurity as major concerns, maintaining that families struggling to afford food and transportation needed practical solutions rather than political exchanges over educational qualifications.

“Poverty is not a future threat to these families. It is the life they are struggling through today,” he said.

He further argued that Nigerians struggling to pay transport fares and provide meals for their families did not need the Vice-President to explain the meaning of poverty.

Shaibu also defended Atiku’s proposal for a targeted and capped subsidy tied to petrol refined in Nigeria, subject to independent auditing.

He challenged Shettima to demonstrate why the proposal would be unworkable and present an alternative that could help reduce fuel prices.

“If Shettima thinks it cannot be funded, he should show his figures and offer a better way to lower prices,” he said.

“Insulting Atiku will not fill a cooking pot, pay a bus fare or put fuel in a tank,” Shaibu added.

ADC Looks Ahead to 2027 Elections

Shaibu concluded by criticising the Tinubu administration and predicting that Nigerians would express their views on the government’s performance in the 2027 general election.

He described Tinubu’s emergence as President in 2023 as an electoral error and argued that voters would have an opportunity to reconsider their choice.

“Nigerians will answer the Vice-President’s mockery and his boss’s record with their votes,” he said.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) of allegedly plotting to discredit the party’s presidential campaign flag-off in Kaduna through the circulation of fake news, fabricated documents and manipulated videos.

The council alleged that the plan involved the use of artificial intelligence (AI), deepfake videos and counterfeit documents to mislead the public and damage the reputations of President Bola Tinubu, Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani and other APC leaders.

In a press statement issued on Saturday, October 24, 2026, the council’s spokesperson, Dele Alake, said the alleged disinformation campaign had been underway in the 24 hours preceding the rally.

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Alake claimed that one of the alleged attempts involved the circulation of a photograph showing a security vehicle on routine patrol near an APC campaign billboard in Kaduna metropolis.

According to him, the photograph was misrepresented to suggest that security personnel had been deployed specifically to protect APC campaign billboards.

The council alleged that a national newspaper subsequently published a report based on the photograph, which Atiku then shared on his official social media accounts.

The statement described the sequence of events as a coordinated attempt to generate attention and undermine the APC campaign.

APC Rejects Alleged ₦2.3tn Kaduna Rally Expenditure

The APC council also raised concerns over a purported letter circulating online, allegedly written by Governor Uba Sani and addressed to the Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari.

The alleged letter claimed that the Kaduna State Government had released ₦2.3 trillion to host the APC rally.

Rejecting the claim, Alake questioned how a state government could spend such an amount on a political rally, arguing that the figure exceeded Kaduna State’s combined budgets for 2024, 2025 and 2026.

According to the statement, Kaduna State’s budgets stood at ₦458.271 billion in 2024, ₦790.439 billion in 2025 and ₦985.9 billion in 2026.

“The combined Kaduna State budgets for 2024 (₦458.271 billion), 2025 (₦790.439 billion), and 2026 (₦985.9 billion) are still less than ₦2.3 trillion,” the statement said.

Alake described the purported letter as fabricated and questioned the credibility of the allegation concerning the state’s expenditure on the rally.

APC Warns of Alleged Deepfake Videos

The council further alleged that the photograph and purported letter were only part of a broader plan to discredit the campaign.

It claimed that old, doctored and deepfake videos would be circulated as the rally progressed to create the impression that residents were dissatisfied with the APC and its leaders.

The council said the alleged tactics were intended to manipulate public opinion through mainstream media and social media platforms.

“We hereby use this opportunity to alert the general public about this malicious and ignoble plan,” Alake said.

He urged Nigerians to exercise caution when encountering information about the rally, particularly photographs, official-looking documents and videos circulating online.

APC Criticises Atiku, ADC

The APC Presidential Campaign Council also criticised Atiku and the ADC, alleging that they were prepared to employ various tactics in their efforts to gain political power.

In the statement, the council described the ADC as Atiku’s “special-purpose vehicle” and questioned the opposition’s approach to the political contest.

It further alleged that the former vice president and his political associates would resort to what it described as desperate measures to undermine the ruling party.

The council concluded by urging Nigerians to remain vigilant and reject what it characterised as a coordinated disinformation campaign.

“We urge Nigerians to be vigilant and reject their machinations,” Alake said.