Opposition Coalition Will Fail, Says Kogi Rep

The lawmaker representing Yagba East/Yagba West/Mopamuro Federal Constituency of Kogi State, Rep. Leke Abejide, has declared that the opposition coalition which recently adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its platform is on the verge of collapse, describing himself as the “landlord” of the party.

Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Friday, Abejide said the coalition’s inability to secure even a single seat in the August 16 bye-elections signalled the beginning of its downfall.

“You can see that the coalition collapsed last Saturday; all over the country, they could not even win one seat. That was the beginning of the end.

“By early next month, the coalition will collapse completely, because you cannot come to somebody’s house, hijack his house, and you think that the person, no matter how stupid he is, will be looking at you,” Abejide said.

The lawmaker explained that although he did not establish the ADC, his consistency and loyalty had kept the party alive, adding that he had resisted the temptation to defect to bigger parties and had used the ADC to win elections and bring other lawmakers to both the National Assembly and the Kogi State House of Assembly.

“I will let them know that I am the landlord. I didn’t establish the party, but I am the one who made the party remain where it is today.

“I have never decamped to a big party; I have used it [the ADC] to contest all my elections and brought people, apart from myself, to the National Assembly and the state assembly,” he added.

Abejide criticized the July 2025 coalition deal that brought together heavyweight politicians across party lines, arguing that many of its leaders had no history with the ADC.

He singled out former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra governor Peter Obi, saying neither of them was a card-carrying member of the party.

While former Senate President David Mark and former Osun State governor Rauf Aregbesola were formally members, Abejide insisted they had no leadership stakes in the ADC before the coalition agreement handed them interim positions as chairman and national secretary.

The July coalition had unveiled an ambitious line-up of political heavyweights under the ADC, with some of its members including former Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai, former Rivers governor Rotimi Amaechi, former Minister of Youth and Sports Solomon Dalong, Senator Gabriel Suswam, publisher Dele Momodu, Senator Ireti Kingibe of the Labour Party, former deputy speaker Emeka Ihedioha, and retired Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.

Opposition Coalition Will Fail, Says Kogi Rep is first published on The Whistler Newspaper