The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has called for the immediate arrest and prosecution of Kuje Area Council Chairman, Samuel Danjuma Shekwolo, over his reported directive that residents must support or vote for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 elections or leave the council area.
The opposition party described the alleged statement as a threat of forced displacement and a violation of citizens’ constitutional rights, particularly Sections 40, 41 and 42 of the 1999 Constitution.
In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, on Thursday, the ADC urged the Inspector-General of Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest Shekwolo and allow the courts to determine the matter.
The party argued that every Nigerian has the constitutional right to reside anywhere in the country, belong to a political party of choice and be protected from discrimination based on political opinion.
According to the ADC, Shekwolo’s reported comments were particularly troubling because, as an elected council chairman, he has a responsibility to protect all residents regardless of their political affiliation.
The party also questioned the mandate of the chairman, noting that he secured 17,269 votes in the election, while the PDP and APGA candidates polled 15,824 and 4,305 votes respectively.
“Twenty thousand of the people he now threatens to evict did not vote for him and he has a responsibility towards them as well,” the statement said.
The ADC linked the Kuje controversy to recent comments attributed to Senator Francis Fadahunsi during the Osun State governorship election.
The party alleged that on August 15, at Polling Unit 1, NUD Primary School, Illusoriness, Fadahunsi warned voters against supporting candidates they were not “supposed to vote for,” while also allegedly threatening members of the Accord Party. The senator was subsequently questioned by the police and released without charge, according to the ADC.
The opposition party said the two incidents reflected what it described as a growing culture of political impunity, which it linked to President Bola Tinubu’s July 29 comment that “all is fair in politics.”
The ADC called on President Tinubu to personally clarify the statement and make it clear that it was not intended to authorise intimidation, voter suppression, violence or forced displacement.
It also urged the President to publicly call members of his party, including Shekwolo and Fadahunsi, to order.
The party insisted that a clarification from presidential aides would not be sufficient, arguing that the President himself should explain what he meant by the statement.
The ADC further appealed to the National Peace Committee to intervene before the 2027 elections, warning that failure to act early could allow political threats to escalate into violence. “If it waits until 2027, it will be issuing condolences, not appeals,” the party warned.
Among its demands, the ADC called for the arrest and prosecution of Shekwolo, the reopening and prosecution of the case involving Fadahunsi, and the preservation of all audio, video and documentary evidence relating to both incidents by the police, DSS and INEC.
It also demanded that the APC publicly disown Shekwolo’s reported statement and discipline him in accordance with its party constitution.
The ADC further called for a full retraction and public apology from the Kuje chairman, while urging domestic and international election observers to identify the FCT and Osun State as early-warning areas ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“Nigerians are not tenants in their own country, holding their residency at the pleasure of a ruling party. We are citizens,” the party declared.
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