The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has strongly criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s push for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, describing it as “absurd” while bandits continue to terrorize Nigerians across the country.
Insecurity Versus Global Ambition
According to the ADC, Nigeria cannot seek greater international responsibilities while failing to fulfill its most basic duty of protecting lives and property.
In a statement released in Abuja by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC questioned President Tinubu’s absence at the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) passing-out parade in Kaduna, where 874 cadets were commissioned into the Army. Instead, the President attended the commissioning of the renovated National Arts Theatre in Lagos.
Bandit Attacks Highlight National Crisis
The ADC cited several recent attacks, including the killing of worshippers in a Zamfara mosque on Friday and mass abductions across villages in Zamfara and Katsina. Within two months, over 140 lives have been lost in these states alone, with Amnesty International estimating that more than 10,000 Nigerians have been killed by armed groups since May 2025.
The party warned that in Zamfara, bandits now extort farmers, control farmlands, and collect illegal taxes—functions that resemble governance. “When non-state actors control territory and kill with impunity, they become a parallel government,” the ADC said.
ADC: Nigeria’s Territorial Integrity at Risk
The ADC emphasized that the challenge is no longer about insecurity alone, but about Nigeria’s territorial integrity being undermined under President Tinubu. It described the government’s inaction as “evidence written in blood,” stressing that in other countries such a crisis would have triggered resignations, emergency meetings, and policy overhauls.
Instead, the party lamented that Nigerians receive only “routine condolence tweets” from presidential aides while violence persists.
Global Leadership Starts at Home
The ADC argued that Nigeria’s call for a UN Security Council seat is unrealistic unless the government proves capable of protecting its citizens. “Leadership on the global stage begins with responsibility at home,” the party noted, adding that the world sees Nigeria as a nation where lives are “brutish, nasty, and short.”
Condemnation of Presidential Absence
The ADC also condemned Tinubu for skipping the NDA parade for a second consecutive year. “With the dire security situation, we expected the President to inspire the new officers and reassure Nigerians in the North. Instead, he chose to commission a renovated theater in Lagos,” the party said.
According to the ADC, this signals misplaced priorities, with the President acting as a “passive spectator” while communities are destroyed. The party further accused him of responding swiftly to political crises, such as in Rivers State, but ignoring life-threatening security emergencies in Zamfara and Katsina.
Call for State of Emergency
The ADC once again demanded the immediate declaration of a state of emergency in Zamfara State to end the killings and restore order.
