ADC Fires Back at Keyamo: ‘APC Abandoned Zoning, Gambled with Unity, Now Lectures Others’

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has hit back at Aviation Minister and All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain, Festus Keyamo, accusing the ruling party of hypocrisy on zoning and warning that Nigeria has already paid the price for APC’s “win-at-all-cost” politics.

In a strongly worded response, ADC National Publicity Secretary, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, said Keyamo’s commentary on zoning and succession politics ignores the APC’s own record of discarding power-sharing principles when it suited the party’s ambitions.

Abdullahi recalled that during the intense jostling for Senate President in 2015, the APC leadership initially zoned the position to the North-Central. But when it became clear that Senator Bukola Saraki had the numbers, influential leaders led by Bisi Akande and now-President Bola Ahmed Tinubu argued that zoning was “a PDP idea” and incompatible with so-called progressive politics, a shift that paved the way for backing Senator Ahmad Lawan from the North-East.

“That argument only made sense because APC had already behaved as if zoning did not matter,” Abdullahi said, pointing to the wide-open presidential primaries that featured aspirants from across regions in both 2015 and 2023. He added that the party ultimately “zoned 2027 to the incumbent, not to any region,” underscoring what he described as APC’s selective use of principles.

Beyond geography, Abdullahi said national cohesion also requires sensitivity to religious balance, something he argued the APC deliberately ignored by fielding a same-faith presidential ticket. According to him, the choice proved that the party was willing to gamble with unity if it improved electoral odds.

“In settling for a Muslim-Muslim ticket, APC put a knife to a fragile rope of national unity,” he said, insisting that any future reversal would be driven by strategy, not conscience.

Turning to Keyamo’s recent focus on the ADC, Abdullahi dismissed suggestions that the party was on the verge of mishandling its presidential ticket. He said the ADC is building a “winning coalition” and has not closed discussions on strategy, but will not cross lines that threaten national stability. “What we are putting together is a coalition designed to win. But unlike APC, we are guided by principles. We have seen where win-at-all-cost politics has taken the country,” he said.

Abdullahi also rejected claims that the ADC revolves around any single politician, describing Keyamo’s insinuation as an attempt to unsettle Peter Obi’s supporters rather than a sincere critique. He suggested recent political developments, including events in Enugu on New Year’s Eve, indicate that Keyamo’s strategy “has not worked.”

Despite the sharp words, Abdullahi closed his response on a lighter note — wishing the minister a Happy New Year while insisting that serious conversations about zoning, fairness, and unity require honesty about the APC’s own decisions.

The ADC statement by Bolaji Abdullahi reads in full

My brother @fkeyamo, Happy New Year!

We never even start, you don de write this kind long epistle. You for wait small now. But on a serious note, your perspective on the issue of zoning is not correct.

You may be aware (or not) that at the beginning of the controversy over who should be Senate President after the 2015 presidential election, the initial decision by the party leadership was to zone the number three position to the North Central. However, when it looked like Dr. Saraki was going to emerge, the ACN bloc, led by Baba Akande and Asiwaju BAT (now President), argued that zoning was a PDP thing and was alien to progressive politics, which they claimed to represent. It was on that basis that they backed Ahmed Lawan from Yobe (North East).

That would not be a baseless argument, considering that the presidential primaries that produced PMB appeared to have been thrown open, irrespective of zoning. This was why Rochas Okorocha (4th, 264 votes) was able to contest alongside Buhari, Kwankwaso, @Atiku, and Sam Nda-Isaiah. This pattern was repeated in 2023, when the primary election was contested by Ahmad Lawan (NE), Ahmed Sani (NW), Yahaya Bello (NC), alongside southern candidates. And, like 2019, APC simply zoned to the incumbent in 2027, and not to any region.

Now, talking about zoning as a mechanism for strengthening national unity, you would agree with me (hopefully) that this also includes religious balancing, which has proved to be even more fundamental to our national cohesion than geographical considerations. Yet, APC put a knife to this fragile rope of national unity when it settled for a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

In doing that, APC showed that they had no time for balancing religious sensibilities as long as, in their calculations, it was a same-faith ticket that would deliver victory. And if they change it or keep it in 2027, it would not be because they suddenly suffered a pang of conscience, it would be a matter of political strategy.

Now, to ADC, which I noticed you have suddenly become preoccupied with in the last 48 hours or so, even worrying on our behalf about how we could get our presidential ticket wrong. Which is quite curious though, because shouldn’t you actually be happy that we were about to make a mistake?

I will make this clear: what we are putting together is a winning coalition. Therefore, for us, nothing is settled yet. But I can assure you that when we do decide, it will be based on a clear strategy to win the election. I must also add, however, as a matter of principle, there are lines the ADC will not cross in order to keep the country together. After all, we have seen where APC’s win-at-all-cost approach has led our country.

Finally, what you said about the ADC being organised around an individual’s ambition is not true. And every ADC member knows this. If anything, it is just a weak attempt at gaslighting the @PeterObi camp. But with what happened in Enugu on New Year’s Eve, don’t you think that your stratagem has not worked?

Once again, Happy New Year, brother.