The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has challenged the All Progressives Congress (APC) to provide evidence supporting its allegation that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and the opposition party planned to use deepfake videos, fabricated documents and misinformation to undermine the APC’s presidential campaign rally in Kaduna.
The ADC’s Director of Strategic Communication for its Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, made the demand in a statement on Saturday in response to allegations by Dele Alake, spokesperson for the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
Alake had accused Atiku and the ADC of planning to circulate artificial intelligence-generated videos and false documents to discredit the APC’s campaign flag-off in Kaduna. He also alleged that the opposition circulated a purported letter claiming the Kaduna State Government approved ₦2.3 trillion to host the rally, alongside images and videos suggesting that security personnel had been deployed to protect campaign billboards.
Shaibu Accuses APC of Making Unsupported Claims
Shaibu said Alake had failed to provide evidence connecting Atiku or the ADC to the alleged fabricated materials.
“He accuses Atiku Abubakar and the ADC of a ‘devious plan,’ AI manipulation and deepfakes, yet offers no evidence linking them to the alleged letter or any fabricated video,” Shaibu said.
He called on the APC spokesperson to present names, dates and forensic findings to support the allegations, describing the accusations as an attempt to divert attention from the ruling party’s record.
Shaibu said the APC should provide verifiable evidence rather than make claims he described as politically motivated.
ADC Links Public Dissatisfaction to Rising Living Costs
The ADC official argued that the ruling party’s economic policies, rather than opposition propaganda, were responsible for dissatisfaction among Nigerians.
He cited petrol prices of about ₦1,400 per litre, diesel prices exceeding ₦2,000 per litre and food inflation approaching 20 per cent as indicators of the economic pressures facing households.
Shaibu also referred to a World Bank poverty estimate reported by Reuters, which he said indicated that more than half of Nigerians were living in poverty in the previous year.
“These are the brutal consequences of an incompetent, callous and ruinous economic course. They are not fake news,” he said.
He added that negative perceptions of the APC could not be separated from the cost of food, transportation and other essential expenses.
Security Vehicle Near Campaign Billboard Questioned
Shaibu also questioned the APC’s explanation that a security vehicle photographed near one of its campaign billboards in Kaduna was conducting a routine patrol.
“Bola calls the vehicle near an APC billboard a ‘routine patrol.’ Nigerians can still ask why a campaign billboard needed protection,” he said.
The ADC official further referred to reports that some APC supporters brought to Kaduna from distant states had been left sleeping on the streets after arriving for the rally.
ADC Raises Concern Over Reported Accident Involving Supporters
Shaibu also raised concerns about reports of an accident involving APC supporters travelling from Sokoto and Abuja to attend the Kaduna rally. He acknowledged that details of the reported incident had not been confirmed.
“More troubling still, reports have emerged of an accident involving APC supporters travelling from Sokoto and also from Abuja to the rally. Details remain unconfirmed, and the APC must urgently account for the passengers’ safety,” he said.
He criticised the alleged arrangements for transporting supporters, arguing that making people undertake long journeys and sleep outdoors to attend a political event raised concerns about their welfare.
Shaibu accused the APC of placing greater emphasis on the appearance of large crowds than on the safety and dignity of the people attending its rallies.
Shaibu Questions Tinubu’s Campaign Schedule
The ADC campaign official also questioned President Bola Tinubu’s campaign schedule, claiming that the President was campaigning in only 12 states because supporters were being transported from one rally venue to another.
Shaibu argued that moving supporters between states undermined the APC’s claims of widespread nationwide support.
“A campaign that must transport its audience from state to state cannot pass off that audience as spontaneous nationwide support,” he said.
He added that transporting crowds between locations could affect the time available for campaign activities and questioned what would happen if supporters failed to arrive at subsequent venues.
ADC Says Rally Crowds Will Not Guarantee Electoral Support
Shaibu maintained that hiring buses, gathering supporters and displaying campaign billboards would not necessarily translate into votes for the APC.
“You can hire buses, assemble a crowd and plaster the streets with billboards. You cannot hire consent,” he said.
He argued that rising prices, declining purchasing power and what he described as unfulfilled promises had contributed to public dissatisfaction with the ruling party.
Shaibu also dismissed the APC’s criticism of Atiku as a distraction from the economic challenges facing Nigerian households.
“Alake’s attack on Atiku will not reduce the cost of a meal by one naira,” he said.
ADC Predicts Defeat for APC at the Polls
Shaibu expressed confidence that Nigerians would vote against the APC, accusing the ruling party of seeking to retain power despite its record in government.
He said campaign rallies, press statements and attacks on opposition figures would not resolve the economic difficulties facing citizens.
“The real desperados are those clinging to power while the country burns. At the polls, Nigerians will reject this discredited record and defeat the APC. No volume of propaganda can talk the party out of the reckoning it has earned,” Shaibu said.
