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Renowned cleric and founder of Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has disclosed that he is facing intense pressure from influential political figures to join the African Democratic Congress (ADC), a rising opposition coalition.<\/p>\n
Bakare made the revelation on Saturday during the inaugural edition of the Citadel School of Governance Dialogue Series held in Lagos. He noted that despite the persistent appeals from top political actors, he has no intention of joining the ADC.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere 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,\u201d Bakare said.<\/p>\n
According to him, several prominent politicians\u2014including a former governor and a former minister from the South-West\u2014have been lobbying him to align with the coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections.<\/p>\n
Bakare revealed that the pressure is not limited to political elders. A younger associate who rose to prominence through key positions in the All Progressives Congress (APC) has also urged him to support the ADC\u2019s political project.<\/p>\n
However, he was unequivocal about his stance:<\/p>\n
\u201cI 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\u2019t birth a child called APC and then try to kill it yourself. We are not going to have another Awolowo\u2013Akintola crisis in the South-West.\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking further, Bakare stated that President Bola Tinubu\u2019s emergence as Nigeria\u2019s leader was divinely ordained, insisting that no one can upturn what God has permitted.<\/p>\n