ADC Candidates Vow to Tackle Insecurity, Education Crisis in Northwest
Governorship candidates of the African Democratic Congress in the seven Northwest states have pledged to pay a minimum wage of N110,000 and establish 21 specialist hospitals if elected in 2027. The candidates made the commitment on Wednesday while signing the Northwest ADC Governorship Candidates’ Compact 2027–2031 at the Yar’adua Centre in Abuja. The pact outlines a joint regional agenda focused on security, development and shared prosperity. Former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and Kebbi State ADC candidate, Abubakar Malami, SAN, who read the communiqué, said the region had lost more than 16,000 lives to insecurity between June 2023 and August 2026, while over 1,583 kidnapping incidents since January 2023 had resulted in more than 10,000 people being taken from their homes and farms. The candidates also cited widespread displacement, abandoned farmland and the Northwest’s share of Nigeria’s out-of-school children as major concerns. They promised to declare emergencies on insecurity and education, deploy drones and technology-driven surveillance, establish a Northwest Regional Security Coordination Centre and coordinate their security structures across state borders.
Under the compact, the candidates also pledged to strengthen food security through protected agricultural corridors, formalised livestock production, agro-processing, regional grain reserves and irrigation rehabilitation. They promised to integrate Almajiri and Tsangaya children into formal education, support girls’ school attendance, improve teacher recruitment and training, and tackle the region’s out-of-school children crisis. In healthcare, they committed to expanding primary healthcare, midwives, telemedicine and community health insurance, while establishing one specialist hospital in each senatorial district. The candidates also promised regional infrastructure development covering roads, rail, independent power generation, solar facilities, water systems and logistics infrastructure. They accused APC-led administrations in the region of failing to translate federal allocations into improved living conditions and backed ADC presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar’s promise to restore the fuel subsidy. They said each state would retain control over its budgets, civil service and other constitutional responsibilities, while cooperating on issues that cross state boundaries. The candidates said their compact was designed to promote people-centred governance, responsible reforms and measurable improvements in the lives of residents across the Northwest.
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