The Presidency has punctured claims by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) accusing President Bola Tinubu’s government of exploiting the passing of former President Muhammadu Buhari for political gain.

In a release issued on Saturday entitled: Re: Buhari’s Burial – A Response To ADC’S Obnoxious Statement, issued by presidential spokesperson, Mr Sunday Dare, described the allegations as both dishonest and deeply disrespectful.

Emphasising the solemnity and dignity with which the State Burial ceremony for late Muhammadu Buhari was conducted, the presidential media aide stressed that such remarks are an affront to the millions of Nigerians who sincerely mourn the loss of the revered statesman.

According to the statement: “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.”

The presidential spokesperson further noted that President Tinubu’s administration is neither desperate nor seeking cheap popularity.

Instead, he stated that the government allows its “tangible achievements speak volumes, rising far above the distracting noise and political posturing of marginal groups such as the ADC.”

Dare affirmed that President Tinubu honored his late predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, with the dignity befitting his passing and continues to uphold his legacy through dedicated hard work rather than empty rhetoric.

He noted that governance is a continuum and that President Tinubu remains focused on delivering the Renewed Hope Agenda, “not on dignifying the desperate antics of political scavengers.”

The presidential media aide added that the Tinubu led administration is focused on delivering tangible results rather than dignifying the desperate antics of political opportunists.

Dare also listed the achievements of the Tinubu-led administration to include, stability of naira, harmonised exchange rates, increased oil production up to 1.7MBPD, increase in FAAC allocations by over 60%.

He also outlined the Federal government support provided for 31 states, once crippled by debt and now paying salaries, pensions, and contractors, decoupling of Naira from oil market volatility, regaining resilience, restoration of electricity to long-neglected communities.

Others include, Infrastructure delivered: Ogbia-Nembe Road, Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Road, and more, NELFUND: about 400,000 students benefit from the historic loan scheme and the establishment of Regional Commissions to drive balanced development nationwide.

He also mentioned the Consumer Credit Scheme launched, a project he described as a foundation laying scheme for a credit-based economy and attacking corruption at its root.

Dare added that the aforementioned are not press statements but tangible, measurable, and ongoing projects under the leadership of President Tinubu.

The Presidential aide urged Nigerians to disregard what he described as a “distracting noise from a group clearly struggling for relevance.”

His words: “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.

“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.”

The presidential release stated, inter alia:

“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?

“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.

“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”.

Deji Elumoye

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