Headlines
El-Rufai Supports Return of Presidency to South in 2023
The Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, on Monday said the 2023 presidency should go to Nigeria’s southern region.
He said this will promote the democratic tenets and balance of power among the regions in the country.
Prior to this, a former military head of state, Ibrahim Babaginda, in an interview on Channels TV expressed a similar thought.
Unlike Mr El-Rufai, the ex-head of state specifically mentioned the Igbos while Mr El-Rufai did not specify which of the southern geopolitical zones should take the presidency in 2023.
For many years, Nigeria’s political class have observed an unwritten rule that has seen the presidential slot rotated between its majorly Christian-dominated south and the Muslim-dominated north.
The current president, Muhammadu Buhari, is from Katsina, in the North-west. He defeated the then incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan, in 2015. Mr Jonathan, who is from Bayelsa, South-south, region took over from late President Umaru Yar’Adua, a northerner.
El-Rufai joins debate
“The general political consensus in Nigeria is that the pesidency should rotate between the North and the South. It is not written but everyone understands it,” the Kaduna governor said.
“In some of the parties, like the PDP, it is even written down in their constitution but it was breached in 2015. I think that every politician of honour should understand and abide by that consensus except there is an extenuating circumstance compelling it to be set aside. What could this be?
“President Yar’Adua died in office and it was compulsory for Jonathan to continue but when 2011 election came, there were many people who insisted that Jonathan should step aside for a northerner to complete the tenure of Yar’Adua but I opposed it because I didn’t think it was proper for an incumbent that got there not by his own design should be stopped from contesting when the constitution has not barred him from running,” the Vanguard newspaper reported the governor as saying on Monday.
Mr El-Rufai acknowledged the ‘deliberate’ omission of zoning in the ruling APC’s constitution but opined that it is ideal that “the Northern APC will have to sit down and endorse someone, most likely someone from the south, because after eight years of Buhari, I don’t think the presidency should remain in the north unless there is some extenuating circumstances. But all things being equal, we will honour our agreement and we keep our words.”
Veteran journalist and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Chief Dele Momodu, has declared that a joint presidential ticket between Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi represents the strongest strategy for the opposition to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress in the 2027 general elections.
Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television, Momodu said the emerging ADC coalition is gaining momentum as a credible alternative to President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which he accused of promoting “one-man rule” and weakening democratic institutions.
Momodu argued that an Atiku–Obi ticket offers both experience and electoral appeal, noting that both politicians already command significant national followings from previous elections. He recalled their collaboration in 2019, adding that Obi’s performance in the 2023 presidential election provides a ready base of supporters that can be consolidated.
According to him, the coalition is further strengthened by the involvement of political heavyweights such as Rabiu Kwankwaso and Rotimi Amaechi, making it a formidable opposition alliance.
“The candidates who placed second, third, and even fourth are aligning. That naturally builds a strong challenge,” Momodu said, suggesting that this development could unsettle the APC ahead of 2027.
He also accused the Tinubu administration of centralising power and undermining democratic processes, claiming that key institutions—including the legislature and electoral system—are increasingly influenced by the executive arm of government. He warned that such a trend poses risks to Nigeria’s democracy.
Momodu further alleged that opposition parties face systemic obstacles, including difficulties in accessing venues, legal pressures, and institutional interference. He argued that these challenges have made opposition unity not just strategic, but necessary.
Dismissing concerns about possible cracks within the ADC coalition, Momodu described such fears as speculative, insisting that current political realities have effectively forced major opposition figures to work together.
The Supreme Court has scheduled hearing for April 22 in the appeal filed by the National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Senator David Mark, in relation to the leadership dispute in the party.
Mark’s appeal is against the March 12 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which dismissed his appeal against the September 4, 2025 ruling by Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja refusing to grant some injunctive reliefs contained in an ex-parte application filed by a chieftain of the party, Nafiu Bala Gombe.
A five-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Mohammed Garba chose the date on Tuesday after granting accelerated hearing in the appeal marked: SC/CV/180/2026.
The court ordered Mark’s lawyer, Jibril Okutepa (SAN) to file the appellant’s brief and serve on Wednesday.
It ordered the respondents to each file and serve on the appellant, a respondent’s brief within three days of being served with the appellant’s brief.
The appellant, according to the court, is to file a reply brief, if needs be, within one day of being served with the respondents’ briefs.
Headlines
Amid Denials, ADC Reportedly Secures Rainbow Event Centre As Venue for National Convention
Baring any last minute change, the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) under Senator David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola as National chairman and National Secretary respectively will hold the party’s National convention at the National Rainbow Event Centre in Garki on Tuesday, 14 April 2026.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has being denied two venues without any cogent reasons despite early arrangements, according to sources.
First, it was alleged that the Abuja Transcorp Hilton Hotels, which was initially approached, turned down the ADC request to use it’s facility.
The ADC, having sensed sabotage, has kept the Rainbow Event Center under rap as it’s definite venue.
The last National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party was held at the same venue.
Located adjacent the Nigerian Police Force Headquarters, the event centre will host the second NEC meeting of the ADC and it’s forthcoming national convention.
According to The Guardian’ report, the ADC leadership has communicated the venue to state chapters with the caveat not to escalate it.
The ADC is in a battle of survival against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and has approached the Supreme Court for intervention.
The INEC national chairman Prof Joash Amupitan has suspended recognition of the David Mark-led ADC rendering a leadership vacuum in the party.
INEC said it’s decision was on the basis of an Appeal Court pronouncement that ordered statusquo ante-bellum be maintained.
Reports say that why the venue is being quietly decorated moderately for the event, the ADC intends to fully move in the early hours of Tuesday.
The Guardian
