Supporters of President Bola Tinubu have told a rival political party to “stop looking for scapegoats” and face its own internal collapse as the battle for control of Nigeria’s opposition intensifies.

The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) issued a blunt advisory on Monday to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), dismissing claims that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is plotting to manufacture “confusion” within the party’s ranks.

The row follows allegations from an ADC faction—led by former Senate President David Mark—that “powerful figures” in the government were pressuring the electoral commission, INEC, to recognize a rival wing of the party.

The ‘Atiku Factor’

The TMSG traced the ADC’s current woes back to July 2025, when a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aligned with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar reportedly took over the ADC structure.

According to the pro-Tinubu group, this “hostile takeover” bypassed the party’s internal rules, leading to a bitter legal battle between original party members and the new “interlopers” from the PDP.

“No one in the APC tele-guided supposedly savvy individuals to pick the ADC as a platform for a coalition,” the statement read, adding that it was “deeply laughable” to suggest the President was responsible for the opposition’s failure to conduct due diligence.

Analysis: The ‘Coalition’ Conundrum

For months, rumours have swirled in Abuja about a “mega-party” coalition being formed by Atiku Abubakar and other opposition heavyweights to unseat President Tinubu in 2027. The ADC was widely seen as the primary vehicle for this new alliance.

However, the TMSG’s rebuttal highlights a significant structural weakness in this plan:

• Internal Fractures: The original ADC leadership, led by Ralph Nwosu, is now locked in a court battle with the David Mark-led “Atiku group.”
• Legitimacy Issues: If the courts or INEC refuse to recognise the new leadership, the entire “coalition” platform could be ruled invalid before a single vote is cast.

‘Building a party is no tea party’

The TMSG pointed to the president’s own history of merging diverse interests to form the APC in 2013, suggesting that his rivals are looking for an “easy way out” rather than building a party from the ground up.

“Building and nurturing political parties is not a tea party,” the group said, urging the ADC to resolve its own disputes in court rather than blaming “imaginary people” for its woes.

With both factions of the ADC now awaiting a definitive ruling from the judiciary, the opposition’s hopes of presenting a united front for 2027 appear to be stalled by the very same internal “infidelity” that has plagued the PDP for years.