SEALING OF SOKOTO ADC OFFICE: ATIKU CAMPAIGN COUNCIL KICKS, ALERTS IGP, US, UK, EU, GOV’T DEFENDS ACTION 

SEALING OF SOKOTO ADC OFFICE: ATIKU CAMPAIGN COUNCIL KICKS, ALERTS IGP, US, UK, EU, GOV’T DEFENDS ACTION

From Bashir Rabe Mani in Sokoto

The Atiku Abubakar ADC 2027 Presidential Campaign Council has condemned the sealing of the Sokoto State Campaign Office of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), describing it as illegal, unconstitutional, reckless and the latest in a pattern of lawlessness in Sokoto State.

This was contained in a press statement signed and issued on Tuesday, 4th November, 2026, by its Deputy Director-General, Administration, Yusuf Suleiman (Dan Amar Sokoto).

According to the Council, on Tuesday, 3rd November, 2026, officers of the Sokoto State Police Command, acting on the orders of the Sokoto State Government, sealed the State Campaign Office of the ADC located on Ahmadu Bello Way, Sokoto.

The Council said no court order was shown, no notice was served and no lawful reason was given for the action.

It described the act as a trespass on private premises and a direct assault on the right of a registered political party to organise, assemble and campaign, a right guaranteed by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and protected by Section 95 of the Electoral Act, 2026.

The Council dismissed the government’s claim on ownership as not credible, insisting the ADC has operated openly from the premises for more than eight years, stressing that a government genuinely interested in ownership or occupation of a building would write and ask, not send armed officers to lock the doors of its opponents on the eve of a campaign.

The statement noted that the sealing is coming barely four days after the attack on its governorship candidate, His Excellency, Manir Muhammad Dan’iya, at the Sultan Sadiq Abubakar International Airport, Sokoto.

“The truth is plain. The Sokoto State Government is alarmed by the growing, organic support for the ADC and its candidates across the State, and it has chosen to answer that support with force instead of argument,” the Council declared.

It said it rejects the conduct in its entirety and will pursue every legitimate and lawful remedy available to reopen the office and protect its members, supporters and property in Sokoto, while holding the Sokoto State Government and the Police Command responsible for any breach of the peace that follows.

The Council therefore called on the Inspector-General of Police to direct the immediate unsealing of the premises and to remind the Sokoto State Police Command that its duty under the law is to protect every party equally, not to serve one.

It also called on all well-meaning Nigerians, civil society organisations, election observers and the international community to condemn the action and demand answers, and urged Nigeria’s international partners, including the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy and the Commonwealth, to take note of those undermining democratic processes and democratic governance in Sokoto and to apply against them the visa restrictions they maintain for individuals who subvert democracy.

“Democracy in Sokoto will not be locked away. The people of Sokoto will be heard,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, the Sokoto State Government had earlier announced the sealing of the ADC-occupied office over an ownership dispute.

The State Commissioner for Lands, Housing and Physical Planning, Barrister Nasiru Aliyu Dantsoho, who announced the development on Monday during an inspection visit to the premises, said the government took the decision to prevent further disturbances and protect lives and property following a recent confrontation involving party supporters and suspected miscreants.

According to him, a review of the Certificate of Occupancy and other relevant documents showed that the property originally belonged to the defunct Savannah Bank, with no official record indicating that ownership had been transferred to another individual or organisation.

“Following a review of the Certificate of Occupancy and other relevant documents, we discovered that this property belongs to the Savannah Bank, and that ownership has not changed as of today,” Dantsoho said.

He disclosed that the state government had formally written to the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the custodian of the property, seeking clarification on its current ownership but is yet to receive a response.

He said the premises would remain sealed and under the control of the state government until the dispute was resolved, urging anyone claiming ownership to submit verifiable documents to the ministry for verification and proper documentation, and warning that anyone attempting to forcefully gain access would face the full weight of the law.