Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary: SDP’s Adewole Adebayo Urges Nigerians To Resist Election-Rigging, Vote-Trading And Elect Credible Leaders
* PROMISES TO ERADICATE POVERTY AND INSECURITY IN FOUR YEARS
As Nigeria marks its 66th Independence Anniversary, the 2027 Presidential Candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo, has issued a fierce, uncompromising call to the Nigerian electorate.
Adebayo urged citizens to aggressively resist and reject election-rigging and vote-trading as the nation heads toward the crucial 2027 general elections.
In an Independence Day anniversary message contained in a statement on Thursday October 1 2026 and signed by Comrade Mark Adebayo, Head Of the Directorate of Media and Communications for the Adewole Adebayo-Bugaje Presidential Campaign, Adebayo warned that Nigeria’s hard-fought democracy was actively being choked to death by systematic electoral corruption.
He noted that the current political trajectory under the All Progressives Congress (APC) had completely derailed from the visions of the nation’s founding fathers.
Adebayo provided a stark historical perspective on how electoral malpractice undermined good governance.
He reminded Nigerians that the collapse of previous republics and the subsequent decades of brutal military dictatorships were the direct consequences of politicians subverting the true will of the people.
“History has shown us that when you steal the vote, you steal the destiny of the nation,” Adebayo stated. “Election rigging is not a victimless political game. It is a violent assault on the sovereignty of the citizens. It installs illegitimate leaders who feel no accountability to the public. This lack of accountability explains why our hospitals remain broken, our schools are crumbling, and our economy is in shambles. Bad governance is the direct, poisonous fruit of rigged elections.”
The SDP candidate did not hold back in his assessment of the current administration.
He described the ruling APC’s governance style as fundamentally anti-democratic and deeply damaging to the fabric of the Nigerian society.
“The way the APC is ruling this country is, for the most part, completely anti-democratic,” Adebayo declared. “We are witnessing the weaponisation of poverty, where citizens are deliberately impoverished so they can be bought cheaply at the polling booths. Economic policies are deployed without human empathy. Dissent is suppressed, and the Judiciary is constantly subjected to political influence. This is not the democracy our heroes fought for; this is a civilian autocracy masquerading as a Republic.”
Looking forward to the 2027 general elections, Prince Adewole Adebayo emphasised that Nigerians must make it abundantly clear that vote-rigging will no longer be tolerated under any guise.
He issued a stern, unequivocal warning to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“This is a strict warning to INEC that there is no room for ‘GLITCHES’ in 2027.
“Nigerians are wiser, hungrier, and more determined than ever before,” Adebayo warned.
“Let it be known today that an excuse of a ‘technical glitch’ by INEC in 2027 will be totally unacceptable. We will not accept the deliberate shutdown of results-viewing portals, nor will we tolerate sudden electronic failures that only seem to occur when the ruling party is losing. INEC has years to prepare, and billions of Naira are allocated for technology. Any failure in 2027 will be viewed not as a glitch, but as a deliberate act of treason against the Nigerian people.”
Adebayo concluded his anniversary address with a rallying cry to all Nigerians to reclaim their country by safeguarding their votes.
The SDP flag-bearer submitted: “As we mark 66 years of Independence, let us remember that true freedom means choosing our own leaders without coercion, bribery, or manipulation. Do not sell your vote for a morsel of bread today only to suffer for the next four years. Stand firm, protect your polling units, demand transparency, and let us collectively rescue Nigeria from the hands of electoral predators in 2027. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
