ADC Enugu Condemns Governor Mbah’s Defection to APC, Warns of handing over state to International Terrorist Organization

ADC Enugu Condemns Governor Mbah’s Defection to APC, Warns of handing over state to International  Terrorist Organization 

Enugu, Nigeria — October 14, 2025

The African Democratic Congress (ADC), Enugu State Chapter, has condemned in strong terms the defection of Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah to the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing it as a dangerous political alliance that threatens Enugu State’s autonomy, economic independence, and democratic integrity.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the party accused Governor Mbah of “aligning with forces that have institutionalized poverty and captured the economic lifelines of Nigeria,” warning that his defection represents “a clear step toward surrendering Enugu’s future to external political and economic control.”

The ADC’s position follows recent reports from a Canadian Federal Court, where Nigeria’s major political parties — including the APC — were referenced as “terrorist-linked organizations” during an immigration appeal. Though Nigerian authorities and party officials have denied the claim, the ADC said the development “casts a troubling shadow over the global perception of Nigeria’s democracy and the moral standing of those who choose to affiliate with such platforms.”

According to the party, the governor’s decision reflects a deepening pattern of political realignment designed to impose economic hardship on Enugu residents through aggressive revenue drives and exploitative fiscal models. The ADC noted that the APC’s influence in Enugu has already become evident through the outsourcing of state revenue administration to private contractors reportedly connected to Lagos and Abuja power brokers.

“When a state hands over its tax system and internal revenue management to external operators, it loses not only control of its finances but also its dignity,” said Hon. David C. Ani, Publicity Secretary of ADC Enugu. “Governor Mbah has effectively ceded the economic sovereignty of Enugu to outside interests. Our people are being made to pay the price for political favors that benefit only a few.”

The ADC emphasized that the ongoing fiscal centralization threatens to strip Enugu of its independence, turning it into a mere extension of federal economic structures controlled by a small elite. The party expressed alarm at what it described as the “Lagos model of monopolistic governance” being quietly introduced into Enugu, a system that prioritizes private profits over public welfare.

Beyond the institutional damage, the ADC said the human cost of these policies is already visible. Traders, transporters, and small business owners have reported increased levies and operational costs, while youth unemployment continues to climb. “Every new tax, every hidden fee, every outsourced contract chips away at the livelihood of ordinary people,” Ani stated. “What is unfolding in Enugu is not governance — it is the quiet auctioning of our collective future.”

The ADC also criticized what it called the “moral inconsistency” of Governor Mbah’s move, recalling that he had campaigned on promises of transparency, innovation, and reform. “Those promises have now been traded for political expediency,” the statement said. “The same administration that vowed to protect Enugu’s economy is now transferring its control to federal proxies.”

The party urged citizens, civil society groups, traditional institutions, and the media to remain vigilant, warning that silence could allow the erosion of democratic accountability in the state. It called on journalists and human-rights observers to investigate the identities and mandates of the private actors now handling Enugu’s fiscal systems, insisting that “the people deserve full disclosure of who manages their taxes, under what contracts, and for whose benefit.”

“The future of Enugu cannot be decided in secret boardrooms or by external financiers,” Ani warned. “Democracy dies not with a gunshot but with quiet compliance. Our people must resist any effort to turn Enugu into a political appendage of external forces.”

While acknowledging that the Canadian court reporting remains under legal review, the ADC maintained that the deeper issue lies in the lived reality of Enugu residents. “The courts abroad may debate definitions, but here in Enugu, the verdict is clear — people are poorer, overtaxed, and increasingly voiceless,” the statement added.

The ADC reaffirmed its commitment to serving as a people-centered alternative, dedicated to policies that prioritize jobs, education, industrial development, and community empowerment over patronage politics. The party pledged to continue defending Enugu’s democratic values, advocating for transparency, and promoting leadership that answers to the people, not external benefactors.

“Our vision remains unshaken,” Ani concluded. “The ADC stands for an Enugu that belongs to its people — not to contractors, not to political sponsors, and not to imported ideologies. We will continue to speak truth to power and fight for the restoration of Enugu’s dignity, independence, and hope.”