Follow Us on Google
… says party will field candidates in all elections
From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja
The National Leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Sen. Henry Seriake Dickson, has declared that the newly formed party is neither a proxy of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) nor under any legal threat, insisting its registration by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is final and irreversible.
Speaking during a live appearance on AIT Focus Nigeria, the former Bayelsa State governor dismissed speculations questioning the party’s legitimacy, stating unequivocally that “there’s no litigation against NDC registration” and that INEC “has already implemented the court order and cannot reverse.”
Dickson rejected claims that either INEC or the APC was planning to challenge the party’s registration in court, describing such assertions as baseless and politically motivated.
He also pushed back strongly against narratives portraying the NDC as a creation designed to weaken opposition forces or advance the interests of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“I’m used to this kind of bully tactics,” he stated, stressing that he is “not someone who is swayed by propaganda and blackmail.”
The senator further asserted his independence, saying, “No one has opposed the policy and administration of President Tinubu more than me,” pointing to his record in the Senate as evidence.
Other News
Describing the NDC as an ideological platform, Dickson said the party was established to unite Nigerians with shared democratic values. While noting that the party remains open to engagement with other political groups, he maintained that it is not aligned with any existing party.
Emphasising the constitutional right to freedom of association, he said, “No one can blackmail or bully me or any other Nigerian to belong to a party or form a party or take one view or the other. That’s blackmail, and you don’t do that.”
Addressing calls for him and his supporters to align with opposition platforms such as the African Democratic Congress or Labour Party, Dickson insisted that Nigerians must retain the freedom to make independent political choices.
“Democracy means you have the right and the freedom to be in the ADC, to be in the APC… to be in the Labour Party… and… thousands of Nigerians… also have a right to be in the NDC,” he said, adding that “we have no duty or obligation to belong to the ADC or to be available to support any presidential aspirant that people support.”
He also alleged that some self-acclaimed opposition figures are covertly aligned with the current administration, stating that “most of the people who say they are opposition… are the people in bed with the present administration,” while maintaining that he has remained consistent in his political stance.
Referencing his political journey, Dickson framed the criticism against the NDC as part of a familiar pattern faced by emerging movements, citing Mahatma Gandhi: “First they will ignore you, then they will laugh at you, then they will attack you… and when that happens, then you win.”
Amid shifting alliances ahead of future elections, the Bayelsa West senator said the NDC would not collapse into any existing platform but would instead challenge them at the polls.
“The NDC will field candidates for all positions in the next general elections, from the Presidency all the way down to the state houses of assembly, and even the council polls,” he said.
Dickson maintained that the NDC will continue to grow its base and offer Nigerians an alternative political platform.
