The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has described the arrest and planned trial of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife by the United States as a defining global moment that carries grave lessons for Nigeria and other countries grappling with questions of legitimacy and democratic integrity.
According to the coalition party, the dramatic development has shattered the long-held assumption that national borders can permanently shield leaders accused of electoral fraud, repression and abuse of power.
ADC noted that the incident is not merely about Venezuela but a signal to governments that derive authority from disputed mandates and coercion rather than the freely expressed will of their people.
The party condemns the Federal Government’s failure to issue a response within 48 hours of the development, describing the silence of the Bola Tinubu administration as deeply embarrassing and damaging to Nigeria’s standing in global affairs. The ADC argued that Nigeria’s muted posture stands in contrast to reactions from other countries and international leaders, and reflects a troubling retreat from moral leadership.
It warned that leaders who preside over contested elections and shrinking civic space increasingly see global accountability as a personal threat.
ADC, in a statement released on Monday in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, stated that while it upholds the principles of sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of states, these principles were never intended to shield tyranny or protect stolen mandates. The party insisted that governments that undermine their own laws and trample on citizens’ rights inevitably invite external scrutiny and intervention.
The ADC recalled that Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election was widely condemned by regional governments, the European Union and international democratic institutions, noting that the scale of global rejection underscores a growing international resolve against authoritarianism masked as electoral politics.
The statement reads: “The African Democratic Congress (ADC) considers Saturday’s action by the United States Government to arrest the President of Venezuela, Nicholas Maduro and his wife as a clear warning that sends a strong message to the Nigerian government and any other government that lacks legitimacy.
ADC strongly supports the principles of sanctity of national sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs of another country, as enshrined in Articles 2(1) and 2(4) of the United Nations Charter, principles that underpin global peace and order.
“Nevertheless, we maintain that these international governance doctrines that were ordinarily designed to maintain global order shouldn’t be invoked to provide a safe haven for tyranny, electoral fraud, or the systematic denial of a people’s right to freely choose their leaders.
“It’s public knowledge that the 2024 Venezuela presidential elections were widely condemned as illegitimate and deeply flawed by nine governments across Latin America, the European Union, and international democratic institutions, all pointing to a process marked by fraud, repression and exclusion. Political opponents were barred from contesting, peaceful protests were met with violence, and state institutions were weaponized against the very citizens they exist to serve. The net consequence of this has been mass migration at a scale that undermines regional stability.”
The party further explained that while the United States intervention raises serious and legitimate questions under international law, one reality remains undeniable: the spontaneous public celebrations that followed within Venezuela revealed a profound crisis of legitimacy at the heart of the Maduro regime.
According to the ADC, when citizens flood the streets in celebration of such an intervention, it’s not simply an endorsement of foreign action but a powerful indictment of a government that has lost the consent of the governed.
The party further stated that it finds it deeply embarrassing that, more than 48 hours after the events in Venezuela, the Nigerian government has remained silent. It described the inaction by the APC-led administration as further evidence that Nigeria has lost both its voice and influence on the international stage under President Tinubu.
It added that “at a moment when the world is grappling with the difficult balance between sovereignty, democracy, and accountability, Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation and largest democracy, is conspicuously absent.”
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