The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of exploiting the death of former President Muhammadu Buhari to rehabilitate its poor public image.
In a statement released on Friday and made available to Naija News, the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, described the Tinubu-led government's actions as “cynical,” alleging that it staged a public relations performance masked as a tribute to the late Buhari.
“The choreographed Federal Executive Council (FEC) tribute, complete with a publicised appearance by our late President’s grieving son, was not a demonstration of genuine respect,” Abdullahi said. “It was a calculated public relations stunt by an unpopular government.”
The ADC stated that the same administration, which had spent over a year blaming Buhari for Nigeria’s economic crisis, is now attempting to cloak itself in his legacy following his death.
“It is hypocritical and in bad taste,” the statement continued. “You cannot spend months discrediting a man’s legacy only to turn around and perform grief for the cameras.”
The party criticised the inclusion of Buhari’s son, Yusuf, at the FEC session, describing it as political theatre and exploitation of a bereaved family. “Grief is not a campaign strategy,” the ADC warned.
The statement recalled the administration’s earlier attempts to distance itself from Buhari-era policies, especially on fuel subsidy, economic mismanagement, and governance.
“What we witnessed at the Federal Executive Council this week was only a part of the larger plan that had only started to unfold,” Abdullahi added, reiterating the party’s earlier warning to the Buhari family to be wary of political hijacking of the late President’s memory.
The ADC concluded by urging Nigerians to reject what it called a “grand deceit,” maintaining that no PR stunt can redeem a government it described as having “behaved like an army of occupation.”
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