Anambra Was Dress Rehearsal For 2027 Rigging – ADC.

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The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has condemned the conduct of the 2025 Anambra governorship election, calling it a dress rehearsal for electoral fraud expected in 2027.

According to the ADC, the election was heavily influenced by money, turning the democratic process into a marketplace and raising serious doubts about the credibility of Nigeria’s upcoming 2027 general elections.

In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC alleged that the incumbent governor and his party engaged in widespread vote buying, with cash exchanging hands openly at polling stations while security personnel and election officials turned a blind eye.

“The African Democratic Congress has followed the recent Anambra governorship election with great concern for Nigeria’s electoral process. What took place was, unfortunately, a money-soaked event that resembled a market more than an election. This severely undermines the essence of democracy,” Abdullahi said.

The party maintained that the election was marred by blatant cash-for-vote transactions, violating the Electoral Act and eroding public trust.

“We wish to state clearly that, as widely reported and evident to Nigerians and the international community, this election was highly monetised. The incumbent and his party were involved in various forms of cash-for-vote practices. At polling units across the state, bundles of naira notes changed hands openly. This is a flagrant breach of the Electoral Act, which the Governor himself had helped to establish well before the election,” the ADC stated.

The party also criticised the failure of state institutions tasked with safeguarding the election’s integrity. It said security forces and election officials were either silent or inactive while voters faced harassment and financial coercion.

“More troubling was the obvious silence, and sometimes visible inaction, from the agencies mandated to uphold electoral integrity. Security operatives stood idly by as voters were harassed and compromised, while electoral officials appeared either overwhelmed or indifferent, failing to enforce even the most basic standards,” the party added.

The ADC warned that the shortcomings seen in Anambra could set a dangerous precedent for the 2027 general elections, noting that Nigeria’s democratic credibility is already under international scrutiny.

“If this is how the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) plans to manage the 2027 elections, Nigerians have every reason to be concerned about the future of our democracy, especially at a time when our nation is under the international spotlight,” the party said.

Despite the criticism, the ADC reaffirmed its commitment to democracy based on integrity and inclusivity, rather than financial manipulation.

“For our part, the ADC remains dedicated to building a Nigeria where leadership is earned through honesty, inclusiveness, and service—not through crude cash exchanges for votes,” Abdullahi concluded.