“I’m Under Serious Pressure to Join ADC” — Tunde Bakare*

The Serving Overseer of Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has revealed that he is under intense pressure from political stakeholders to join the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

Bakare made this known on Saturday during the maiden edition of the Citadel School of Governance Dialogue Series held in Oregun, Lagos. The event, themed “Nigeria at 65: Historical Reflections, Futuristic Projection,” brought together political leaders, academics, and members of the public to discuss Nigeria’s development journey.

According to Bakare, several influential figures, including a former governor and minister from the South-West, have approached him to align with the ADC. “There has been a lot of pressure on me from who is who to join ADC. They come to my home. Even while I was abroad, the hierarchy of that party kept calling, saying they needed my voice,” he said.

He added that one of his younger political associates, who previously held key positions in the All Progressives Congress (APC), also encouraged him to lend his influence to the ADC.

However, Bakare dismissed the idea, stressing that he has no intention of joining the party. “I am not going to take part in ADC. The last time I knew about ADC was about a plane that crashed. I wish them well, because we need a robust opposition. But you don’t birth a child called APC and then try to kill it yourself. We are not going to have another Awolowo–Akintola crisis in the South-West,” he stated.

The cleric, who was instrumental in the formation of the APC, reaffirmed his belief that the emergence of President Bola Tinubu was divinely ordained. “If God wants to remove ‘emilokan’, He knows how to do it. You can’t get the kind of thing Tinubu has brought without God’s support,” Bakare said.

Guest speaker Professor Akinjide Osuntokun, a former Nigerian Ambassador to Germany, also spoke at the event, identifying corruption and tribalism as Nigeria’s major challenges. “The two problems our country faces are corruption and tribalism. If there is a way of eradicating these two evils, we will be alright. Corruption is the father or mother of tribalism. If the money being stolen was available for development, Nigeria would be far better,” he noted.

Osuntokun emphasized that the ethnicity of a president should not determine governance outcomes, adding, “The fact that Tinubu is president does not automatically improve the life of an average Yoruba man, just as an Igbo presidency will not improve the life of the ordinary Igbo man if there is no development.”

The event concluded with calls for visionary leadership and good governance as Nigeria marks 65 years of independence.