Nigeria’s opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC) challenged the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to substantiate an allegation that party staff had gone unpaid for more than 12 months, bringing the wage dispute into the contest before Nigeria’s 2027 elections.
The APC Presidential Campaign Council made the accusation in an Oct. 26 statement signed by spokesperson Dele Alake. It identified the ADC National Working Committee as chaired by David Mark, with Rauf Aregbesola as secretary. The statement did not name affected employees, state how much was allegedly owed or specify the dates covered.
The council also cited Aregbesola’s eight-year tenure as Osun State governor, alleging that workers there received partial salaries and pensioners went unpaid for more than four years. Those claims were part of the APC statement.
Premium Times and Vanguard reported that ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi rejected the salary allegation and called on the APC to produce evidence. Vanguard quoted Abdullahi saying, “If the APC has any credible evidence to support its claims, it should produce it.” Vanguard also reported that he urged public debate to focus on the cost of living, jobs and insecurity. Premium Times reported that the ADC’s response included no payroll records or other documents.
The campaign council urged voters to reject the ADC, Atiku Abubakar and other party candidates in 2027.
