ObunikeThe outcome of the recent FCT Council Elections has once again demonstrated a simple political truth: opposition strength in Nigeria is built from the grassroots upward. The performance of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the FCT has shown clearly that the party has the potential to emerge as the principal opposition platform capable of challenging the dominance of the APC at the national level. However, this promise can only be sustained and expanded through deliberate grassroots participation across the country.
With the benefit of hindsight, it is now evident that the decision taken during the formative stage of the coalition — allowing coalition leaders and members in certain states to contest elections under their former political parties before fully aligning with ADC — was a strategic miscalculation. At the time, it was announced that coalition leaders in Kaduna and Anambra States would participate in bye-elections through their respective legacy parties before fully integrating into the ADC. That decision represented a massive lost opportunity.
It was a monumental milestone missed — a self-inflicted strategic error of considerable proportion. The crucial opportunity to introduce, entrench, and market the ADC brand in those states and across Nigeria was largely lost. Political momentum is built through visibility, and visibility comes through participation. Where the party is absent from the ballot, the party is absent from the consciousness of the people.
The consequences were particularly visible in Anambra State. In Anambra, where I come from, coalition leaders supported ADC candidates for the Onitsha North State Constituency bye-election and the Anambra South Senatorial bye-election, yet supported Labour Party (LP) in the gubernatorial election. This divided political messaging led to a serious loss of ground. The electorate could not clearly identify the coalition’s political vehicle, and the opportunity to consolidate ADC as the natural political home of the coalition was weakened.
Political parties grow through consistency, not divided loyalties. A coalition that seeks to offer a credible alternative must speak with one voice and campaign under one banner.
Going forward, ADC must adopt a clear and uncompromising policy: the party must contest all available local government elections across Nigeria. This includes councillorship and chairmanship elections in every state where such elections are scheduled.
Local government elections belong to the grassroots. There is no better way to build a political party than through grassroots engagement. Councillorship and chairmanship contests create thousands of candidates, campaign structures, and political volunteers. These elections produce ward leaders, polling agents, canvassers, and mobilizers — the very foundation upon which national electoral victories are built.
A political party that intends to challenge the APC-led Federal Government must be prepared to work harder and organize better. The advantages available to an opposition party in Nigeria — public dissatisfaction, economic hardship, and the desire for change — must be deliberately harnessed through organization and grassroots presence.
The results from the FCT elections have shown that ADC is emerging as the main opposition platform. That momentum must not remain confined to Abuja. It must be extended to the states and down to the wards.
The forthcoming local government elections announced by the Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission (ANSIEC) present a significant opportunity. The party must seize this opportunity with seriousness and urgency. There must be visible party activities in all local governments and wards. Candidates must be identified early. Structures must be activated. Membership must be expanded. Campaigns must begin in earnest.
Participation in these elections will make the ADC name and symbol familiar to ordinary voters. It will transform the party from an abstract national platform into a household name at the community level.
No party can win national elections without first winning the confidence of the grassroots.
If ADC truly intends to provide a credible alternative to the APC government, it must commit itself fully to grassroots political expansion. Local government elections are not minor contests; they are the foundation upon which national victory is built.
I can imagine the possible impact of all opposition elements coming together to attend a rally to launch campaigns simultaneously in every state capital in support of ADC candidates in all the local government elections. Such rallies would energize candidates and supporters alike and send a powerful national message that the opposition is united and ready to govern.
These rallies would immediately charge and motivate candidates at the grassroots level. They would demonstrate visible national coordination and seriousness of purpose. Every major opposition leader has influence — or better still, committed followers — in every state of the federation. Harnessing this network through coordinated campaign launches would create unprecedented political momentum for the party.
A synchronized nationwide campaign movement would turn local government elections into a national political statement. It would project ADC as an organized and disciplined political alternative and reinforce the confidence of Nigerians in the coalition.
The lesson from the FCT elections is clear: momentum must be consolidated, not postponed.
The time is now.
ADC must therefore urgently commit to contesting all forthcoming local government elections across Nigeria — including Anambra State where our leaders come from and where the APGA-led State Government claims that the progressives are working together. The local government elections will clearly show how far the so-called “progressives” are willing to go. Let us go there.
The road to 2027 begins from the wards.
Obunike Ohaegbu
A village boy writes from his village in Anambra State
23/02/2026
