Atiku, Mark Insist ADC Offers Solutions To Nigeria’s Economic Challenges

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) holds practical solutions to Nigeria’s economic and security challenges. The party’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and its National Chairman, Senator David Mark have said.

They spoke on Friday in Abuja during the inauguration of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, describing President Bola Tinubu’s 30-day petrol discount as an admission of failure.

Tearing through Tinubu’s economic policies, Atiku said the temporary relief offered by the Federal Government’s temporary relief cannot reverse years of economic hardship on the people.

The ADC candidate accused the Tinubu administration of worsening living conditions through its economic policies and urged Nigerians to hold the president accountable in the January 16, 2027 election.

“Thirty days cannot erase three and a half years of hardship,” the former vice president said, accusing Tinubu of adopting his proposed production subsidy after initially dismissing it as impracticable.

He however, slammed the government for reducing the policy to a temporary discount instead of evolving a long term solution to the mounting energy crisis.

“You copied my production subsidy proposal, stripped away the part that makes it work, and handed Nigerians a 30-day discount,” he said, demanding an apology and asking what would happen when the relief expired.

Atiku said his own proposal would provide sustainable relief by supporting locally refined petroleum products, with the intervention capped, budgeted and independently audited, while excluding imported products.

“Families cannot plan their meals around a temporary discount. Transporters cannot set stable fares on it. Businesses cannot invest or plan for the future on it,” Atiku said.

He promised to make food affordable, restore reliable electricity, create jobs, expand business opportunities and secure roads and farms, arguing that economic growth must translate into improved household welfare.

Atiku urged campaign council members to take the party’s policies to markets, motor parks, farms, campuses and communities, describing the 2027 election as a “rescue mission”. He also called on eligible Nigerians to collect their voter cards and participate in the poll.

On electoral reforms, he demanded immediate public access to polling-unit results, live broadcasts of state and national collation, independent audits of election technology and tougher penalties for electoral fraud. He insisted that party agents, civil society groups and observers must be able to verify results, declaring that “transparency is not a crime”.

The ADC candidate also warned against attempts to restrict opposition campaigns, insisting that there would be no “no-go” areas for the party. He pledged to defend its constitutional rights through lawful means, including the courts and the ballot box.

Atiku warned against another four years of the Tinubu administration, predicting continued hardship and national decline. He urged the president to resign over what he described as the failure of his economic policies, adding that Nigerians deserved a government capable of making life affordable again.

Earlier, ADC National Chairman, Mark, declared that the party offered credible alternative policies and practical solutions to Nigeria’s economic and security challenges as he inaugurated the campaign council.

Mark charged members to embark on aggressive nationwide mobilisation, stressing that no state, community or eligible voter should be left behind.

“This is a council for dedicated hard-work. You have been appointed to serve, mobilise and to deliver,” he told members.

He identified the high cost of living, poverty, insecurity, unemployment, inflation, food prices and declining standards in education and healthcare as key concerns the campaign must address.

“Nigerians already know their problems. We do not need to lecture them about their sufferings. We must listen to them and tell them clearly how we intend to solve the problems,” Mark said, directing the council to engage communities and groups across the country.

He described the Atiku Abubakar-Rotimi Amaechi presidential ticket as one combining experience, capacity and national reach, urging the candidates to promote unity and avoid ethnic and religious divisions.

Mark also called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other relevant institutions to guarantee credible elections, while charging campaign members to demonstrate discipline, patriotism and resilience.

“We will build bridges, and not walls. We shall disagree without hatred. We shall compete without violence,” he said, warning against intimidation, hate speech and political violence.