ADC To Akpabio: You’re Spineless, NASS Encouraging Certificate Forgery

The African Democratic Congress has accused the leadership of the National Assembly of running a Kakistocracy while leaving behind a legacy that encourages certificate forgery.

He also noted that the legacy of this “National Assembly will be that of the most spineless and compromised legislature in Nigeria’s democratic history”.

The criticism followed remarks by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who dismissed opposition complaints about the Electoral Act 2026 and said he felt confident the Senate had enacted the right law whenever opposition parties criticised it.

Akpabio made the remarks on Saturday during a reception for the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

However, reacting in a statement on Sunday, the ADC, through its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, while referring to Akpabio, said the opposition was raising concerns because the amended law contained provisions capable of undermining democratic standards.

“In other words, if the laws had been agreeable to the opposition and did not elicit any complaint, those would have been the wrong laws,” he said.

“The embedded logic of this statement exposes the subterfuge behind the entire business of the Electoral Amendment. It was all designed to make the ruling party and the President happy.

“Amendments are made to laws in order to make them better in meeting national aspirations and advancing the collective best interests of citizens towards achieving a better society.

“It is only in a rogue democracy, or more precisely, in a kakistocracy such as the one we are in today, that the legislature would sit down to make laws that actually lower society’s ethical standards,”Abdullahi added.

He faulted the aspect of the Electoral Act 2026 which removes certificate forgery as grounds for challenging election results describing the provision as a dangerous departure from constitutional standards.

“How can any self-respecting person be happy with himself for presiding over the making of a law that now says the election of an individual can no longer be challenged on the grounds of certificate forgery as provided in Section 138 of the Electoral Act 2026, even though this is in direct contradiction to Sections 66, 107, 137, and 182 of the Constitution,” the statement said.

He argued that the amendment contradicts constitutional provisions and also shows how far a “desperate political party like the APC would go in bringing the country down to its level.

According to him, the amendment sends a damaging signal to Nigerians, particularly young people, by appearing to reduce the consequences of dishonesty in public life.

“And as it stands, the legacy of this National Assembly will be that of a legislature that made a law which lowered the nation’s ethical standard just to serve the interest of one man,” he said.

However, he added that the ADC remained focused on presenting itself as a credible political alternative capable of restoring integrity, competence and accountability to governance in the country.

“History is patient,” Abdullahi said.

“And when the story of this period in Nigeria’s democratic journey is written, Nigerians will remember those who stood to defend the integrity of our democracy and those who chose to weaken it.”