Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has hinted that more political bigwigs may soon defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the ruling party intensifies preparations ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Governor Sule dismissed allegations of persecution and intimidation leveled against the APC, particularly by opposition elements. He insisted that the ruling party is actively strategising in response to the emergence of a new opposition coalition.
“Yes, we have discussed it,” Sule said when asked if APC governors had deliberated on the implications of the new coalition. “As they are planning, we are planning. We’re in politics. We’re not just sitting down watching them plan. So as they plan, we plan. And at the end of the day, the better plans will take over.”
Sule pointed to ongoing defections to the APC as proof of the party’s political momentum, saying, “We keep getting more and more governors from the PDP joining us. Very soon, you will hear another governor joining us. Every day, you hear about senators decamping and returning to the APC. These are all part of the plan they’re not happening by magic.”
His comments come just weeks after a high-profile opposition meeting held on July 2 at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, where leaders of several political blocs adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a unified front to challenge the APC in 2027.
At the meeting, ADC founder Ralph Nwosu presented party membership cards to former Senate President David Mark and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, who were named interim national chairman and secretary of the coalition, respectively.
The event also featured a powerful cast of political actors, including Labour Party’s Peter Obi, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, ex-governors Nasir El-Rufai and Rotimi Amaechi, Senator Ireti Kingibe, Dele Momodu, Emeka Ihedioha, and Dino Melaye.
However, Governor Sule shrugged off allegations by ADC leaders that some politicians were reluctant to join the opposition movement due to fear of APC-led persecution.
“I don’t underrate anybody,” he said. “But the bottom line is they must find something else to say. Jonathan’s era is completely different from this one. We didn’t face the kind of challenges we’re seeing now during Jonathan’s time.
“The calibre of people that came together to form the APC—ANPP, APGA, ACN, CPC, and the new PDP is not the same kind of thing you’re seeing in this new opposition.”
While some have hailed the ADC coalition as a potential game-changer, others, particularly APC loyalists, have raised questions about its structure, cohesion, and staying power ahead of the next general election.
