2027: Nigeria’s elections becoming coronation – Adebayo raises alarm

The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Adewole Adebayo, has called on political parties, civil society organisations, the media and young Nigerians to defend democracy and resist what he termed “a prolonged coronation disguised as an election.”

He maintained that the survival of Nigeria’s democratic system depended on citizens refusing to remain silent.

Adebayo made the remarks while speaking on the state of Nigeria’s democracy and the ongoing political transition process, warning that the nation was drifting toward authoritarian rule under the guise of civilian governance.

He accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of allegedly manipulating Nigeria’s democratic process and turning the country’s once-celebrated electoral culture into what he described as “Option A-Fraud.”

Referencing the famous Option A4 voting system introduced during Nigeria’s Third Republic, the SDP chieftain lamented that a transparent electoral model designed to reflect the true will of the people was now allegedly being distorted for political advantage.

According to him, the original concept behind Option A4 was simple and credible because voters openly queued behind candidates while votes were counted transparently at polling units.

“When Professor Omo Omoruyi and others developed democratic studies during the Third Republic and Humphrey Nwosu implemented Option A4, it was done because it was basic and transparent,” Adebayo said.

He, however, alleged that the Tinubu administration had transformed that legacy into a tool for electoral manipulation.