‘Suspend 2027 Election Activities, Tackle Insecurity’ – House Of Reps Minority Caucus Tells Tinubu

The Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives has accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of abandoning governance and focusing on activities linked to the 2027 elections.

The leader of the caucus, Fred Agbedi, who spoke at a press conference at the National Assembly on Wednesday, accused the government of overseeing a dangerous combination of insecurity, economic hardship and what he described as attempts to weaken democratic opposition through the judiciary while neglecting pressing national issues that need attention.

Agbedi accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Presidency of focusing on political calculations for 2027 instead of addressing the country’s pressing challenges.

He therefore called on the government to immediately suspend all activities linked to the 2027 election and declare a six-month National Security and Economic Recovery Plan aimed at tackling insecurity and economic challenges.

“The life of every Nigerian matters. Politics must take the back seat when the nation bleeds. We must secure Nigeria first,” Agbedi said.

NEWSNGR reports that the caucus called for an immediate overhaul of the nation’s security architecture, a transparent investigation into the abduction and murder of former military spokesperson, General Rabe Abubakar (rtd), and urgent intervention by the Chief Justice of Nigeria to address conflicting judicial decisions relating to political party registration.

The Minority Caucus vowed to continue holding the government accountable through legislative means, insisting that opposition parties would not be intimidated or excluded from the democratic process ahead of the next general election.

It described the death of Abubakar as a national tragedy and evidence of the country’s deteriorating security situation, arguing that the murder of the retired military officer underscored the inability of the state to protect its citizens.

“That a general of the Nigerian Army, who once commanded troops and defended this nation, could be kidnapped alongside his wife and later declared dead under unclear circumstances is a grave indictment of a failed state,” Agbedi said.

According to Agbedi, President Bola Tinubu must provide a clear and effective security strategy to confront banditry, terrorism and kidnapping, which he said continue to threaten lives and communities nationwide.

The lawmakers also expressed concern over the continued captivity of schoolchildren and teachers abducted in Oyo State, calling for an urgent military operation to secure their release.

“As we speak, school children and their teachers abducted in Oyo State remain in captivity. Their crime? Going to school in Nigeria,” Agbedi stated.

On the political front, the Minority Caucus criticised a recent Federal High Court judgment which ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister five opposition political parties.

The lawmakers alleged that the ruling was capable of creating confusion within the political system and could be interpreted as an attempt to weaken opposition parties ahead of the 2027 elections.

Agbedi argued that the judgment contradicted an existing Court of Appeal decision and ignored submissions by INEC regarding the electoral performance of the affected parties.

“We consider Justice Lifu’s judgment as a calculated attempt to muscle legitimate opposition out of the race for the 2027 presidency,” he said.

The caucus, however, welcomed the intervention of the Court of Appeal, which it said had halted the implementation of the lower court’s decision.