The special adviser to the president on media and communication, Mr Sunday Dare, has said that there is no design to have only APC on the ballot in 2027.

Dare, former youths and sports minister, made the clarification when he appeared as a guest on Channels TV’s ‘Politics Today’ programme.

He was reacting to the Wednesday protest by the African Democratic Party (ADC) over INEC’s decision to derecognise the political party leadership factions owing to various court rulings.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suspended recognition of the ADC leadership factions, including the one led by Sen David Mark, due to a March Court of Appeal ruling and ongoing internal leadership disputes.

The ADC calls this a “plot” to block them from the 2027 elections and has protested the decision.

“There are 20 political parties in Nigeria today. No one is stopping them from functioning.

“The All Progressives Congress (APC) will not close shop because other political parties are enmeshed in one crisis or the other,” he said.

He accused the ADC and other political rivals of seeking to play on sentiments and emotions instead of building strong political outfits to challenge the ruling party.

He rejected suggestions that the APC-led federal government was closing down the political space.

He said that the APC-led government recognises freedom of the opposition and all Nigerians, adding that the ADC leaders protesting freely was a testimony to that freedom.

“The federal government will always protect the rights of the people to carry out their activities.

“Journalists work freely and attack the President on a daily basis with no one stopping them from doing their job.

“Is it supposed to be the duty of the president to help organise the opposition?

“Building a strong political party is a tedious process. We all know how difficult it was to build the APC.

“APC is not the architect of ADC’s crisis. It is self-inflicted. Instead of building their party into a strong force, the leaders are looking for shortcuts.

“Building a strong political force requires sacrifice and hard work. If you cannot do that, don’t blame someone else for the resultant failure,” he said. (NAN)