The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has called on the National Assembly to investigate whether President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is still fit to discharge the responsibilities of his office, citing what it described as growing confusion over appointments, dismissals and policy decisions within the Federal Government.
In a statement issued on Friday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the opposition Party said recent controversies involving federal agencies had raised serious constitutional questions about whether presidential directives were still being enforced.
The Party argued that the reported leadership crisis at the Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA) suggested the President was losing control of his administration, with uncertainty now surrounding who truly exercises executive authority.
According to the ADC, the controversy over the BCDA followed another involving the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), which it described as a “phantom” agency that allegedly operated as though it were an official arm of the Federal Government despite claims that it did not exist.
The Party expressed concern over reports that an official who was publicly removed from office by a presidential directive allegedly remained in the position and continued holding meetings with senior government officials.
It said that if the reports were accurate, the issue extended beyond a disputed appointment and raised fundamental constitutional concerns about the exercise of presidential powers.
“The African Democratic Congress is deeply alarmed by yet another bizarre episode in the affairs of the Federal Government, where a man publicly removed from office by a presidential directive reportedly continues to occupy that same office and still hold meetings with senior officials of the same government,” the statement read.
The ADC maintained that where a President announces a replacement but the affected official continues to occupy the office, it creates the impression of competing centres of authority within the Presidency.
“If the reports concerning the Border Communities Development Agency are true, then this is no longer about one disputed appointment. It is about something far more disturbing: who is actually in charge of the Nigerian Presidency?” the Party asked.
It said the BCDA controversy could not be viewed in isolation, pointing to the earlier dispute surrounding the PFIPC, which only came under intense scrutiny after allegations linked its self-styled leadership to senior officials within the Presidency.
According to the opposition Party, the incidents have created uncertainty over whether appointments and dismissals announced by the Presidency are final and binding.
“Today, Nigerians no longer know whether an appointment announced by the Presidency is final, whether a dismissal actually takes effect, or whether someone somewhere possesses a superior authority capable of overruling presidential decisions without explanation,” the statement added.
The ADC alleged that unelected individuals and competing interests were interfering with the President’s constitutional powers to appoint and remove public officers, arguing that official government pronouncements now appear to compete with unofficial centres of influence.
“Effectively, the Tinubu administration has become a place where official announcements compete with unofficial power, where competing interests fight over appointments and patronage,” the Party said.
It further claimed that the Presidency, like the country’s economy and security situation, was beginning to resemble a system governed by “the survival of the fittest.”
The Party also criticised what it described as repeated policy reversals by the Tinubu administration, citing the suspension of the cybersecurity levy after public backlash and the withdrawal of the expatriate employment levy following opposition from investors.
According to the ADC, the frequent reversals and conflicting policy announcements have weakened public confidence in government decisions and created uncertainty among investors, civil servants and public institutions.
“A government that cannot consistently stand by its own decisions gradually loses not only credibility, but authority,” it stated.
The opposition Party called on the National Assembly to exercise its constitutional oversight powers by determining whether President Tinubu remains capable of carrying out his constitutional responsibilities and whether powers vested in the President are being personally exercised by him or by unelected individuals behind the scenes.
It also urged lawmakers to establish who authorised the disputed appointments, whether the President’s directive concerning the BCDA had been overridden, and how the PFIPC was allowed to present itself as a Federal Government agency.
“These are not opposition questions. They are constitutional questions. They go directly to the integrity of executive authority and the stability of our nation,” the Party said.
The ADC maintained that a government in which citizens, investors, diplomats and public officials are uncertain whether presidential directives are final, faces a serious crisis of authority, adding that President Tinubu should resign if he can no longer assert effective control over his administration.
Leave a Reply