Adewole Adebayo, the Social Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, has accused President Bola Tinubu of lacking commitment to peace ahead of the 2027 election.

Mr Tinubu was represented at the event by the secretary to the government of the federation, George Akume.

Mr Adebayo stated this on Wednesday following Mr Tinubu’s absence from the National Peace Accord signing held in Abuja on Tuesday.

“President Tinubu (@officialABAT) not showing up to the National Peace Accord signing yesterday shows that he is not committed to peace,” the politician stated.

Presidential candidates and national chairpersons of political parties participating in the 2027 general elections signed a national peace accord on Tuesday in Abuja as part of their commitment to peaceful, issue-based campaigns ahead of the start of electioneering.

The signing brought together representatives of several political parties and presidential candidates, including Mr Adebayo and Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress.

Mr Adebayo said the president’s absence sent the wrong signal to law enforcement and government workers.

“He is sending a wrong signal to law enforcement, to the people who work for the government, that he does not care about peaceful elections. He needs to make a clear statement explaining why he was absent and committing himself to the peace process,” the politician added.

The presidency did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mr Adebayo’s allegation.

Through his representative, Mr Tinubu said transparent elections would reduce disputes and strengthen confidence in democratic institutions. He urged political parties to campaign on policies and avoid exploiting ethnic and religious divisions for electoral advantage.

“Let us campaign on superior ideas. Let us debate issues and promote the best policies to expand opportunities for our people. Win or lose, our country, Nigeria, must be the ultimate winner,” Mr Akume stated.