The Social Democratic Party has declared that it is fully prepared for the 2027 general elections, with plans to contest all elective positions across Nigeria.
The party’s National Chairman, Prof. Sadiq Gombe, made this known on Wednesday during the SDP National Convention in Abuja. He said the convention showed that the party had remained united and organised despite the challenges it had encountered.
Gombe said the SDP would present candidates for the presidential election, 109 Senate seats, 360 House of Representatives seats, 28 governorship positions and 1,015 state Houses of Assembly seats.
He said the party had also started training its officials across the six geopolitical zones as part of efforts to strengthen its structures and improve its grassroots mobilisation.
According to him, the SDP intends to engage Nigerians with humility, honesty and a clear sense of purpose while giving greater attention to the mobilisation of youths and women.
He said the party’s alternative programme for Nigeria was based on four major areas: security, job creation, social justice and responsible governance.
Gombe also pointed to the policy document recently unveiled by the party’s presidential candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo, and his running mate, Dr Usman Bugaje, as another indication that the SDP was preparing to take over government.
Speaking at the convention, Adebayo blamed the country’s prolonged poverty on poor leadership rather than a shortage of natural resources.
He argued that Nigeria had enough oil, gas and mineral deposits to provide a better standard of living for its citizens but had failed to turn its resources into broad development.
The SDP presidential candidate recalled the party’s history, noting that it emerged during the military era under former Head of State Ibrahim Babangida and later won the 1993 presidential election with the late MKO Abiola as its candidate.
He said the annulment of that election prevented the SDP from implementing its plans to tackle poverty, adding that the hardship the party had sought to address had continued to affect another generation of Nigerians.
Adebayo also argued that Nigeria possessed more natural resources than many countries that had achieved stronger economic development. He maintained that the country’s problems were mainly connected to the quality of leadership and the failure to properly manage its resources.
He said occupying a political office did not automatically make a person a leader, stressing that Nigeria needed leaders who would listen to citizens and serve their interests.
The presidential candidate further said the SDP was different from other political parties because its main focus was to reform the country and provide Nigerians with a government they could trust.
He called on Nigerians to support SDP candidates for the National Assembly so that the party would have lawmakers capable of working with an SDP-led government.
Adebayo also directed party leaders and supporters to begin taking the SDP’s message to homes and communities through door-to-door campaigns as preparations for the 2027 elections gather pace.
He said the party’s major objectives were to tackle poverty and insecurity and create a better future for Nigerians.
Speaking for the party’s governorship candidates, former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, who is contesting the Nasarawa State governorship election on the SDP platform, urged party leaders to focus heavily on grassroots mobilisation.
Adamu called on state chairmen and party members to build stronger links with voters in their communities and explain the party’s plans to them ahead of the election.
He said the SDP’s chances of winning in 2027 would depend largely on its ability to reach voters directly at the grassroots and convince them of its plans to address poverty and insecurity.
Also speaking at the convention, Oba Olaitan Oladipo, who represented Afenifere, warned that social divisions and exclusion could push more young Nigerians into desperate actions.
The monarch said many young people were taking serious risks in their efforts to survive because they felt shut out of opportunities available to others.
He urged Nigerians to speak openly about the problems affecting them instead of keeping their concerns to themselves. According to him, expressing grievances openly could create an opportunity for those in authority to understand the situation and respond.
The convention came as political parties continue to strengthen their structures and mobilise supporters ahead of the 2027 general elections.