The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has criticized Senate President Godswill Akpabio over his remarks suggesting that he feels encouraged whenever opposition parties reject laws passed by the Senate.
Akpabio made the statement on Saturday while speaking at a reception organized for the wife of President Bola Tinubu, Remi Tinubu, in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. During the event, he dismissed objections raised by opposition parties regarding the Electoral Act 2026, insisting that the Senate acted appropriately.
According to the Senate President, whenever the Senate enacts a law that draws criticism from opposition parties, it gives him confidence that the right decision was made.
Reacting to the statement, the African Democratic Congress condemned the remarks, describing them as evidence that the Electoral Act was designed primarily to benefit the ruling party and President Bola Tinubu.
In a statement issued on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party argued that Akpabio’s comments revealed the underlying motive behind the law.
The ADC further criticized provisions within the Electoral Act which it said were structured to shield dishonesty, weaken opposition parties, and undermine public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic process.
Abdullahi also warned that the Senate President could face harsh judgment from history for his role in the passage of the 2026 Electoral Act, particularly the provision that removed certificate forgery as a valid ground for challenging election outcomes.
“The African Democratic Congress has taken note of the recent comments credited to the Senate President, His Excellency Godswill Akpabio, in which he dismissed the opposition’s complaints about the 2026 Electoral Act as evidence that he and the Senate he leads have made the right laws.
“In other words, if the laws had been agreeable to the opposition and did not elicit any complaint, those would have been the wrong laws.
“The embedded logic of this statement exposes the subterfuge behind the entire business of the Electoral Amendment. It was all designed to make the ruling party and the President happy,” the ADC said.
