SDP ready for 2027 election — National chairman

The Social Democratic Party has said it remains focused and organised ahead of the 2027 general elections, declaring its readiness to contest all elective positions across the country.

The National Chairman of the party, Prof. Sadiq Gombe, stated this at the National Convention in Abuja on Wednesday, saying that the gathering demonstrated the party’s resilience despite the challenges it had faced.

“We have faced obstacles at almost every turn, and we remain focused. Today we demonstrate that the Social Democratic Party remains organised, strong and united,” he said.

Gombe said the party would field candidates for the presidency, 109 Senate seats, 360 House of Representatives seats, 28 governorships and 1,015 state Houses of Assembly seats.

“No individual is bigger than the party,” he added.

He disclosed that party officials were already being trained across the six geopolitical zones to strengthen the SDP’s structures and improve its grassroots mobilisation.

“We must engage Nigerians with humility, integrity and sincerity of purpose. We must mobilize our youth and women,” Gombe stated.

According to him, the party’s alternative agenda was built around four key pillars: security, productive employment, social justice and accountable governance.

Gombe also pointed to the unveiling of the policy document by the party’s presidential ticket of Prince Adewole Adebayo and Dr Usman Bugaje as evidence of the SDP’s preparedness to govern.

Speaking at the convention, Adebayo blamed poor leadership for the country’s persistent poverty despite its abundant natural resources.

“God gave Nigeria wealth, leaders gave poverty,” he said.

The presidential candidate said Nigeria had no justification to remain poor given its oil, gas and mineral resources.

He recalled the SDP’s origin during the Babangida era and its victory in the 1993 presidential election with the late MKO Abiola.

“That mandate was denied. The poverty we set out to defeat has grown and consumed another generation,” he stated.

Adebayo argued that Nigeria was richer in natural resources than many countries combined.

Some countries in Europe and Asia would exchange themselves for Nigeria. We have more oil and gas than entire continents. God did not make a mistake creating Nigeria,” he said.

He said Nigeria’s crisis was not caused by a lack of resources but by poor leadership.

“You can hijack an office without being a leader. What Nigeria needs is leadership that listens and serves,” he noted.

Adebayo further distinguished the SDP from other political parties, saying its primary objective was to fix the country and provide Nigerians with responsible leadership.

“The only thing we share with other parties is INEC. We are here for one reason: to fix the country and give Nigerians a government they can be proud of,” Adebayo said.

He also called for the election of National Assembly members who would work with an SDP-led government and directed party leaders to begin door-to-door campaigns ahead of the 2027 elections.

Our mission is simple: farewell to poverty and insecurity. Let us stamp our generation’s name in history,” he added.

Speaking on behalf of the governorship candidates, former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, who is also the SDP governorship candidate in Nasarawa State, urged party leaders to take the campaign to the grassroots.

He called on supporters and state chairmen to mobilise voters in their communities ahead of the elections.

“Victory in 2027 will depend on the party’s ability to connect directly with voters at the grassroots and deliver the SDP message of ending poverty and insecurity,” he said.

Also speaking, Oba Olaitan Oladipo, who represented Afenifere at the convention, warned against social class barriers that he said were pushing young Nigerians into desperation.

The monarch said exclusion could fuel crime, noting that young people were taking significant risks to survive.

“If you don’t belong to that class, you become a target. Young men are staking their lives and their families in business just to survive,” he said.

Oba Oladipo urged Nigerians to speak openly about their concerns rather than complain privately.

“If you are talking, someone will listen. When you speak out, they know where you stand,” he stated.