• Asks Tinubu to clarify ‘all is fair in politics’ statement
•ActionAid raises the alarm over remark
Chuks Okocha and Michael Olugbode in Abuja
African Democratic Congress (ADC) demanded the immediate arrest of Kuje Area Council Chairman, Mr. Samuel Shekwolo, over his reported declaration that residents must vote All Progressives Congress (APC) or leave the council area.
ADC described the statement as “a threat of forced displacement” that breached Sections 40, 41 and 42 of the 1999 Constitution.
In a statement by ADC National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party likened the comment to that by APC Senator Francis Fadahunsi, who was questioned and released without charge after threatening opposition voters during the recent Osun governorship election.
Tracing both comments to President Bola Tinubu’s July 29 comment that, “All is fair in politics,” ADC demanded that the president should personally clarify his statement and call his party to order.
ADC also urged the National Peace Committee to speak now, warning that if it waits until 2027, it could find itself issuing condolences, instead of appeals.
The party said it read with alarm the reported declaration by Chairman of Kuje Area Council, Shekwolo, that residents of Kuje must join or vote for APC or leave the council area.
ADC stated, ‘’Let us be clear about what this is: A sitting elected official, in whose custody the safety and welfare of every resident of Kuje has been placed, has publicly tied a citizen’s right to live in his own country to the party that they vote for.
‘’That is a threat of forced displacement. In a country that has buried too many of its people to political violence, it is an invitation to anarchy.’’
ADC called on the Inspector-General of Police and Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest Shekwolo and charge him accordingly.
Abdullahi said, ‘’Not to invite him. Not to engage him. Not to invite him for a chat and release him before the ink on the headline is dry. Arrest him, charge him, and let a court of law decide.’’
ActionAid Raises Alarm over Remark
ActionAid Nigeria also condemned the statement by Shekwolo, describing it as a troubling threat to democratic freedoms.
ActionAid warned that political intimidation could become normalised ahead of the 2027 elections.
The organisation said an elected public official had a responsibility to serve every resident, irrespective of political affiliation, and should not use public office to pressure citizens into supporting a political party.
Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, Dr Andrew Mamedu, said the alleged statement raised fundamental questions about the protection of citizens’ political rights and the responsibility of state institutions to respond consistently to potentially threatening political rhetoric.
Mamedu said,. “This is deeply concerning. If an elected council chairman openly tells citizens that they must support a political party to continue living in an area under his administration, we must ask what message this sends to citizens who support other political parties or choose not to support any political party at all.”
He maintained that public office must not become an instrument of “political intimidation, exclusion or coercion”.