ADC Accuses FG of Using Coup Rumour to Divert Attention, Clamp Down on Opposition

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has strongly accused the Federal Government of exploiting the recent rumour of an alleged coup plot to serve a dual political purpose: diverting public attention from serious governance failures and creating a justification to silence opposition voices.

In a sharp statement released on Monday, October 20, 2025, the party’s National Spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, warned the government to “desist from weaponising national security as a pretext to silence opposition and political dissent.”

The ADC expressed deep concern over what it described as “conflicting signals” regarding the alleged plot, especially after the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) had publicly denied ever mentioning a coup attempt, describing the reports as “false and malicious.”

“Such inconsistency raises serious fears that the coup narrative may have been politically engineered,” Abdullahi stated. He added that the government’s silence on the matter, despite the military’s denial, has allowed the rumour to “fester” deliberately.

According to the ADC, the true objective is clear: “The government is exploiting the coup story to divert attention from the real issues of misgovernance in the country and to curry sympathy.” The party further warned that subsequent unattributed media reports, purportedly implicating unnamed politicians in the plot, now provide a convenient excuse for the government to “clamp down on opposition figures or mount undue surveillance on them.”

The ADC, while reiterating its firm commitment against any attempt to undermine Nigeria’s constitutional order, called on the Federal Government to issue a categorical statement to either quash the rumour decisively or be transparent about any genuine national security threat.

The government, through the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, had earlier dismissed reports of a coup as “false and mischievous,” reaffirming its confidence in the loyalty of the Nigerian military. However, the opposition party maintains that the government’s handling of the rumour suggests a desperate political move to undermine democratic dissent.