In a major political shake-up, Nigeria’s leading opposition leaders have come together to launch a new coalition aimed at challenging the dominance of President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 presidential elections.
The newly formed Africa Democratic Congress coalition brings together prominent rivals from the last election, including Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, as well as a host of ex-governors and former lawmakers, some of whom previously belonged to the ruling party.
At the official launch event held in Abuja on Wednesday, the coalition’s interim chairman and former Senate president, David Mark, reportedly framed the alliance as a necessary move to protect Nigeria’s political plurality.
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“The coalition will stop Nigeria from becoming a one-party state,” he said.
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The formation of this alliance comes amid growing criticism that President Bola Tinubu is working both overtly and through his political allies to turn Nigeria into a de facto one-party state. Detractors accuse his administration of leveraging state resources and influence to pressure prominent opposition figures into defecting to the APC.
Although Tinubu has publicly denied these claims, the visible support from powerful figures within his party has raised alarm over what many see as a decline in democratic competition, particularly in a region already grappling with creeping authoritarianism.
The urgency of the opposition’s response is underscored by a wave of recent defections from opposition camps to the ruling party, involving both federal lawmakers and governors. With political tensions rising, the race for Nigeria’s presidency appears to be heating up years ahead of schedule.
Political analysts have drawn parallels between the current coalition and the 2015 alliance that successfully ended the 16-year reign of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), once considered unshakeable. Much like that historic upset, today’s opposition hopes to capitalize on public frustration with unmet promises on national security and economic recovery.
President Tinubu’s administration has been under pressure over the fallout from sweeping economic reforms. The removal of long-standing fuel subsidies and the floating of Nigeria’s currency have triggered an inflation crisis and stirred nationwide discontent, while violent attacks by armed groups have resurged in various regions.
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According to Cheta Nwanze, lead partner at SBM Intelligence, the opposition’s only path to success lies in its unity.
“You cannot remove a sitting government if the opposition is disunited,” Nwanze said.
