A fresh war of words has erupted between the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) following a strongly worded press statement by the APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, regarding a reported shooting incident in Edo State.
Responding on Thursday, ADC spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi criticised the tone and language used in the APC statement, describing it as unbecoming of a ruling party.
Abdullahi considered the APC statement insulting, listing such phrases, including “insufferable jesters,” “utterly delusional,” “reckless,” “flippant,” “confused bunch,” and “political wanderers.”
Abdullahi said he found the language disappointing.
“Unfortunately, this is the kind of language I spent two years advising APC spokespersons to avoid. It is unbefitting of a ruling party — indeed, of any public communication in a democratic society,” he stated.
The ADC spokesperson argued that Nigerians could distinguish between measured political communication and what he termed “political overreaction.”
“When a party in government resorts so quickly to insults in response to a straightforward call for accountability, reasonable citizens are entitled to ask what exactly is provoking such visible irritation,” he said.
Abdullahi maintained that the ADC’s position on the Edo incident remained consistent, stressing that the party was not interested in “name-calling or narrative smokescreens.”
“Our position remains simple and consistent: violence in our political space must be investigated transparently, professionally, and without premature absolution,” he said.
He added that if the APC was confident in its claims, it should welcome scrutiny.
“If the APC is as confident as it claims, it should welcome the same sunlight and due process it now so loudly invokes,” he said.
In a pointed remark, Abdullahi also suggested that the APC should “start by talking to their Edo State Governor.”
The exchange follows a press statement by the APC in which it dismissed allegations linking it to the Edo incident and accused the ADC of attempting to smear the ruling party.
As political tensions rise ahead of upcoming electoral contests, the latest verbal clash underscores the increasingly sharp rhetoric between the two parties.
