ADC Challenges Umahi: South-East Won’t Vote Tinubu in 2027 Despite Threats

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Enugu State declared that the South-East will not support President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, dismissing warnings that federal projects could be withdrawn if the region refuses to back him.

The party urged Minister of Works David Umahi to “do his worst,” stating that no intimidation or political pressure would sway voters in the zone to back Tinubu’s re‑election bid.

ADC’s reaction followed remarks allegedly made by Umahi while inspecting federal road and bridge works in Ebonyi State, where he reportedly told the South‑East to back Tinubu in 2027 or risk losing ongoing projects.

In a statement, Enugu State ADC Secretary Adolphus Ude labelled the alleged comments as “reckless, irresponsible and unacceptable,” accusing the minister of trying to blackmail the region into supporting Tinubu.

Ude, a former founding deputy chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Enugu, insisted that South‑East voters are politically independent and cannot be compelled to vote against their will.

He said Umahi’s remarks amounted to talking down on the people of the South‑East and challenged the minister to list the major infrastructure projects the Tinubu government is executing in the zone, including their locations and costs.

The ADC chieftain also disputed Umahi’s claim that the Tinubu administration had addressed the South‑East’s marginalisation, arguing that exclusion has worsened under the current federal government.

He noted that the region has not benefited from flagship projects such as the Lagos‑Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto‑Badagry Highway, and that most projects cited by Umahi were inherited from previous administrations.

Ude said there is no significant new federal infrastructure work underway in the South‑East, pointing out that the long‑awaited dredging of the River Niger remains stalled and the zone still lacks a rail line.

He added that the South‑East remains the most marginalised geopolitical zone under Tinubu, with only five ministers in the Federal Executive Council, three of whom serve as ministers of state.

Ude further alleged that passport‑issuing machines have been deactivated across the South‑East, forcing residents to travel to Abuja for international passports.

He stressed that development projects are a constitutional duty of the federal government, not a favour to any region, and reminded that Tinubu lost in all five South‑East states during the 2023 presidential election.

According to Ude, nothing has changed since then to alter the political mood of the electorate ahead of 2027, and voters will base their choice on governance, fairness, inclusion and performance, not on threats.

He declared that no minister has the right to threaten a region over projects funded with public money, called on Umahi to withdraw the alleged threat and apologise to Ndigbo, and urged him to stop presenting federal projects as political rewards for loyalty to the ruling party.

The ADC secretary concluded that the South‑East will not be blackmailed into supporting any candidate in 2027 and will continue to demand equity, justice and genuine development from the federal government, regardless of how its people vote.