The Presidency has reacted to the criticism by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that the President Bola Tinubu administration was exploiting the burial of former President Muhammadu Buhari for political mileage and image rehabilitation.
In a statement on Saturday, the Special Adviser to the President on Media & Public Communications, Sunday Dare, said ADC’s outburst was “a laughable tantrum by a poorly amalgamated political contraption desperately clutching at straws for relevance it will never attain.”
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Mr Dare also said the ADC is the one exploiting Mr Buhari’s burial for political gains with the way “they have chosen to dance on his grave for relevance.”
A coalition of prominent opposition leaders recently adopted the ADC, one of the country’s 18 political parties, as the platform to challenge the reelection of President Tinubu in 2027.
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Members of the coalition include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Governors Nasir El-Rufai, Rotimi Amaechi, Sule Lamido, Gabriel Suswam, Emeka Ihedioha, Rauf Aregbesola, and Peter Obi, who was the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in 2023.
Former Senate President David Mark and Mr Aregbesola, a former politicall ally of President Tinubu, were named as interim national chairman and secretary, respectively.
Mr Buhari died on 13 July and was buried two days after in Daura, his hometown in Katsina State. Several government officials including President Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima attended the burial.
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Opposition leaders such as Messrs Atiku, Obi and El-Rufai also visited the late president’s family.
Gaining Sympathy with Buhari’s burial
ADC spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi, in a statement on Friday, described the administration’s actions since Mr Buhari’s death as a “cynical” and “stage-managed” in an attempt to gain sympathy, particularly in the North where the former president maintained significant influence.
“The choreographed Federal Executive Council (FEC) tribute, complete with a publicised appearance by our late President’s grieving son, was not a demonstration of genuine respect.
“It was a calculated public relations stunt by an unpopular government, carefully stage-managed to distract Nigerians from the administration’s deepening failures and to rewrite history while the nation mourns ” he said.
He objected to Yusuf Buhari’s presence at the FEC meeting, describing it as “unconscionable” to involve a grieving son in a political setting.
“It is equally troubling that the young man, Mr. Yusuf Buhari, a private citizen and grieving son, was pulled into the political theatre of a Federal Executive Council meeting, just days after burying his father,” Mr Abdullahi stated.
The ADC spokesperson noted that the Tinubu administration had spent over one year blaming the late president for the economic hardship faced by Nigerians and distancing itself from his policies.
Insult to Nigerians
In his statement, Mr Dare said the ADC’s accusation is an insult to millions of Nigerians who genuinely mourn Mr Buhari’s death and who accorded the late president with solemn respect and dignity.
“Their latest press release, alleging that President Tinubu’s government is “exploiting” the passing of former President Muhammadu Buhari for political gain, is not only dishonest — it is an insult to millions of Nigerians who genuinely mourn the loss of a statesman, and who watched the State Burial accorded Buhari with solemn respect and dignity.
“Let it be said clearly: the ADC is the one exploiting Buhari’s death for political attention, not this government. They have chosen to dance on his grave for relevance. From Atiku and El Rufai’s choreographed arrival in Daura — greeted with chants seeking to make political capital from the solemnity of the moment — to this disgraceful press statement, the ADC has shown itself to be utterly shameless,” he said.
Mr Dare also listed some achievements of the Tinubu administration, including the stabilisation of the naira and harmonisation of the exchange rates, raising oil production to 1.7 mbpd, and increased FAAC allocations by over 60 per cent.
Read the full statement by the Presidency
STATEHOUSE PRESS RELEASE
RE: BUHARI’S BURIAL — A RESPONSE TO ADC’S OBNOXIOUS STATEMENT
The latest outburst from the African Democratic Congress (ADC) regarding former President Buhari’s state burial is nothing but an opportunistic exercise in manufactured outrage — a laughable tantrum by a poorly amalgamated political contraption desperately clutching at straws for relevance it will never attain.
This is not the first time the ADC — in its pitiful, stuttering attempts at reinvention — has embarrassed itself with hollow, attention-seeking criticisms and press releases. A party still grappling with an identity crisis presumes lecturing the President of the Federal Republic on governance, decorum, and public accountability. How utterly ridiculous.
Since its emergence, the ADC has resorted to issuing disjointed press statements on every passing event to remind Nigerians it now exists. In its desperation to look like an opposition party, it has now crossed every known line of decency.
Their latest press release, alleging that President Tinubu’s government is “exploiting” the passing of former President Muhammadu Buhari for political gain, is not only dishonest — it is an insult to millions of Nigerians who genuinely mourn the loss of a statesman, and who watched the State Burial accorded Buhari with solemn respect and dignity.
Let it be said clearly: the ADC is the one exploiting Buhari’s death for political attention, not this government. They have chosen to dance on his grave for relevance. From Atiku and El Rufai’s choreographed arrival in Daura — greeted with chants seeking to make political capital from the solemnity of the moment — to this disgraceful press statement, the ADC has shown itself to be utterly shameless.
For clarity, President Tinubu’s administration is neither desperate nor searching for cheap popularity. This government would rather allow its growing list of achievements to speak louder than the noisy irrelevance of groups like the ADC.
The burial of former President Buhari was conducted with the complete honour befitting a leader of his stature. That is why world leaders showed up, millions of Nigerians tuned in on television and across social media, and even ADC promoters were falling over themselves in Daura, prancing about the Buhari family compound like eager real estate agents scouting new territory.
What has this administration done while the ADC howls?
1. Naira stabilised, exchange rates harmonised.
2. Oil production up to 1.7MBPD.
3. FAAC allocations increased by over 60%.
4. 31 states, once crippled by debt, are now paying salaries, pensions, and contractors.
5. Naira decoupled from oil market volatility, regaining resilience.
6. Electricity restored to long-neglected communities.
7. Infrastructure delivered: Ogbia-Nembe Road, Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Road, and more.
8. NELFUND: About 400,000 students benefit from the historic loan scheme.
9. Regional Commissions were established to drive balanced development nationwide.
10. Consumer Credit Scheme launched — a first, laying the foundation for a credit-based economy and attacking corruption at its root.
These are not press statements. These are results. Tangible, measurable, and ongoing. That is leadership.
What does the ADC offer Nigerians beyond sanctimonious whining? Absolutely nothing. If the ADC spent merely half the time it uses on press releases to handle issues from its disenchanted members, the party wouldn’t grapple with many legal problems. This party is consumed by internal squabbles, facing multiple court cases over its very existence, and reduced to issuing these baseless attacks to cling to the fringes of relevance. Are these strange bedfellows, ones to be taken seriously?
No.
Let it be said without equivocation: Nigerians are not fooled. No press statement — however venomous — can erase the facts of progress. President Tinubu honoured Buhari with dignity in death and continues to honour his legacy through hard work, not hollow words.
READ ALSO: Buhari’s demise in popular consciousness, By Ahmed Aminu-Ramatu Yusuf
Governance continues, Nigeria is stable, and President Tinubu remains focused on delivering the Renewed Hope Agenda, not on dignifying the desperate antics of political scavengers.
Nigerians should ignore this political noise from an outfit gasping for attention.
Sunday Dare
Special Adviser to the President o
(Media & Public Communications)
July 19, 2025
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