APC Accuses Atiku, ADC of Plot to Discredit Kaduna Campaign Flag-Off
The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) of attempting to discredit its presidential campaign flag-off in Kaduna through alleged disinformation.
The allegation was contained in a statement issued on Saturday, October 24, 2026, and attributed to Dele Alake, spokesperson for the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
The council alleged that the purported operation involved misleading reports, manipulated photographs, artificial intelligence-generated content, deepfake videos and counterfeit documents intended to damage the image of President Bola Tinubu, Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani and other APC leaders.
As part of its claims, the council cited the circulation of a photograph showing a security vehicle near an APC campaign billboard in Kaduna metropolis.
It alleged that the photograph was presented in a misleading manner to suggest that security personnel had been deployed to protect the party’s billboards.
The council also raised concerns over a purported letter allegedly written by Governor Uba Sani to the Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari.
According to the council, the document claimed that the Kaduna State Government had released ₦2.3 trillion to host the campaign rally.
The APC dismissed the reported expenditure as implausible, citing Kaduna State’s budgets for 2024, 2025 and 2026.
The figures quoted in the statement were ₦458.271 billion for 2024, ₦790.439 billion for 2025 and ₦985.9 billion for 2026.
Together, these figures amount to approximately ₦2.235 trillion, below the alleged ₦2.3 trillion expenditure.
However, the comparison of budget figures alone does not establish whether the purported letter is genuine or whether any specific expenditure was approved or made. The document and relevant government financial records would need to be examined to establish those facts.
The campaign council further alleged that old footage, manipulated videos and deepfake content could be circulated during the rally to create the impression that residents opposed the APC campaign.
It urged Nigerians to scrutinise information circulating online and avoid sharing unverified material.
The council also accused Atiku and the ADC of attempting to manipulate public opinion ahead of the campaign event.
However, the statement, as reproduced in the material located during research, did not provide independently verifiable evidence establishing that Atiku or the ADC organised the alleged disinformation campaign.
A response from Atiku Abubakar and the ADC was not available in the sources examined for this report.
The authenticity of the purported letter, the circumstances surrounding the photograph and the evidence linking the opposition figures to the alleged operation remain matters requiring further verification.
