The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has criticised President Bola Tinubu over the recent appointments of Northerners into federal agencies, describing the move as “too little, too late.”

On Friday, Tinubu appointed Mohammed Babangida, son of former military president Ibrahim Babangida, as Chairman of the Bank of Agriculture, alongside six other Northerners to head various government agencies. The only Southerner among them was Mrs. Tomi Somefun, appointed Managing Director of the National Hydro-Electric Power Areas Development Commission.

In a statement issued by its interim National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC dismissed the appointments as tokenism, stressing that inclusion must go beyond symbolism.

“Tokenism is not inclusion, and symbolism is not governance,” Abdullahi said. “You cannot marginalise a region for over 25 months and expect applause because you suddenly remembered in the 26th month that Nigeria is bigger than Lagos State.”

He described the appointments as a “desperate, cynical attempt to buy back the trust squandered over the past year, especially in Northern Nigeria,” accusing the administration of “political panic management.”

According to Abdullahi, the North bore the brunt of Tinubu’s neglect, with rural communities suffering insecurity, abandoned farmlands, and economic decline aggravated by the hasty removal of fuel subsidy.

“Now, under the rising heat of public discontent and the emergence of a formidable opposition coalition, Tinubu suddenly remembers there are Nigerians to appoint outside Lagos,” he said.

He added that Northerners are not deceived by what he termed “Bourdillon-style appeasement politics,” and called on the president to pursue true national inclusion through meaningful consultation, equitable policymaking, and respect for federal character.