Dele Momodu to join ADC on Thursday in Benin City, backing a coalition push to challenge President Tinubu ahead of the 2027 election

Former presidential candidate and publisher, Mr Dele Momodu, will on Thursday formally defect to the African Democratic Congress at a public event in Benin City, marking a dramatic shift in Nigeria’s evolving opposition politics ahead of the 2027 general election.

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The declaration is scheduled to take place at the new ADC State Secretariat in the Edo State capital, with senior party officials and prominent political figures expected to attend.

Momodu, a political ally of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, is among the leading opposition voices advocating a broad-based coalition to challenge President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress in the next election cycle.

The coalition effort, still in its formative phase, is drawing politicians from across party lines who argue that a fragmented opposition cannot effectively counter an incumbent administration without a unified platform.

Speaking ahead of the event, Momodu described the move as a homecoming and urged Nigerians to support what he framed as a national rescue mission.

“It’s a homecoming for me because all politics, they say, is local. Tomorrow I will formally join the ADC, and as a proud son of Edo State, I will be paying homage to our elders from Edo, some of whom have joined us in the ADC,” Momodu said.

He said former All Progressives Congress chairman John Oyegun and former federal lawmaker Yisa Braimoh were among the leaders expected at the event.

After the declaration, Momodu said he would return to his village to celebrate with supporters who have already aligned with the ADC platform.

Momodu said his defection was aligned with a broader effort to build a formidable opposition coalition capable of unseating President Tinubu in 2027.

The former candidate called on Nigerians to set aside partisan divisions in defence of democratic governance.

“I call on Nigerians, regardless of party affiliation, to join hands in shielding our beloved country from the emerging one-man dictatorship in Nigeria.

We must protect the democracy won for us by the late Moshood Kolawole Olawale Abiola,” he said.

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Momodu said the decision to join the ADC was not driven by personal ambition but by what he described as a higher national interest, arguing that democracy must be protected in the interest of the nation and its citizens.