…Slams National Assembly For Democracy Day Recess
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has faulted President Bola Tinubu’s Democracy Day broadcast, describing it as “another campaign speech masquerading as a presidential address.”
The party insisted that Nigerians deserve tangible results rather than renewed promises after three years of the administration and more than a decade of the All Progressives Congress (APC) rule.
In a statement on Friday by the ADC spokesman, Bolaji Abdullahi, the opposition party slammed the President for what it described as his abysmally poor performance.
It argued that the President’s repeated assurances on economic recovery, job creation and improved security amounted to an admission that the APC had failed to fulfil the promises that brought it to power in 2015.
According to the ADC, Democracy Day should have provided an opportunity for the President to account for his administration’s performance and the APC’s stewardship over the past 11 years, rather than offer what it called another catalogue of future intentions.
“President Tinubu’s address was long on promises and short on answers. What Nigerians heard today was not the speech of a government entering its fourth year in office. It was the speech of a candidate seeking another mandate,” the party said.
The ADC noted that throughout the address, the President appealed for continued faith in his economic reforms and promised improved prosperity, jobs and security.
“The question Nigerians should be asking is simple: after three years of President Tinubu and eleven years of APC rule, why are we still talking about promises?” the party queried.
It recalled that the APC came to power in 2015 with commitments to tackle insecurity, revive the economy, create jobs, reduce poverty and strengthen institutions.
The ADC however, argued that the persistence of those same issues in government speeches was evidence that the promises remained unfulfilled.
“The fact that the President is still making many of the same promises that brought the APC to power is itself an admission that those promises remain unfulfilled,” the statement added.
The party further accused the President of portraying his administration as though it had only recently assumed office.
“President Tinubu has been in power for three years. The APC has governed Nigeria for more than a decade. At this stage, Nigerians are not interested in projections. They are interested in outcomes. They are not looking for assurances. They are looking for evidence,” it said.
The ADC also criticised the government’s handling of the economy, arguing that millions of Nigerians were grappling with one of the worst cost-of-living crises in recent history.
“The President spoke extensively about economic reforms. Yet he failed to adequately address the reality that millions of Nigerians are experiencing one of the most severe cost-of-living crises in recent memory. Food prices remain painfully high.
“Transportation costs have soared. Small businesses continue to struggle under rising operating expenses. Families across the country are making painful sacrifices simply to survive. Nigerians cannot be expected to celebrate economic theories while enduring economic hardship.”
The party said Democracy Day should have been used to explain why insecurity, unemployment and economic hardship persist despite years of APC governance.
“Democracy Day should have been an opportunity for the President to account for eleven years of APC stewardship. It should have been an opportunity to explain why, under him, the lives of Nigerians have been rendered worthless.
“Why millions of Nigerians are struggling with the cost of living, why unemployment and underemployment remain widespread, and why public confidence in government continues to decline.
“Instead, Nigerians were presented with another catalogue of future intentions.”
The ADC maintained that a government still appealing for patience after years in office was effectively acknowledging that its promised results had not materialised.
“The ADC believes that a government that is still making promises after eleven years in power is effectively admitting that it has not delivered.
“A government that continues to ask for patience after three years in office is acknowledging that the promised results have not materialised.
“Nigerians deserve more than speeches about what may happen tomorrow. They deserve answers about what has happened over the last eleven years.”
The party further alleged that the administration was more focused on managing public expectations than delivering measurable outcomes.
“President Tinubu’s Democracy Day address confirms what many Nigerians already know: this administration is increasingly focused on managing expectations rather than delivering outcomes.
“The government wants credit for promises and applause for intentions, while ordinary Nigerians continue to bear the consequences of its failures.”
It added: “After eleven years of APC rule and three years of President Tinubu’s administration, Nigerians deserve answers. They deserve accountability. Above all, they deserve a government that delivers.”
The ADC also condemned the decision of the National Assembly to proceed on recess on Democracy Day, describing it as a missed opportunity to demonstrate commitment to democratic accountability.
“The legislature is the bastion of democracy anywhere. A moment like this is an opportunity for the elected representatives of the people to celebrate democracy by showcasing their commitment to hold the government to account on behalf of the people they represent.
“Unfortunately, when it matters most, the APC-led National Assembly demonstrated, once again, a painful lack of historical awareness by shutting down the house of democracy on Democracy Day,” the party stated.
(The Whistler)
