Bolaji Abdullahi, national publicity secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), says Peter Obi wanted the party’s 2027 presidential ticket without showing interest in its policies.
Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, former governor of Kano, formally joined the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) on Sunday.
Earlier, Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), had announced his exit from the ADC, while Kwankwaso also hinted that he was having “wide-ranging consultations” with the NDC.
Speaking on Arise TV on Monday, Abdullahi said Obi was not interested in the ADC’s framework and position on vital issues like petrol subsidy and security.
“Now, I heard His Excellency Peter Obi say that he is not desperate to be president, but he is only desperate to rescue Nigeria, and that has to be built on something,” Abdullahi said.
“We set up a manifesto committee because you asked us what we wanted to do differently, which took almost two to three months to develop a manifesto for the party and came up with clear positions on what we would do differently.
“You may invite His Excellency Peter Obi here and ask him, what is the ADC position of fuel subsidy? What is the ADC framework on security? He doesn’t know because he has never been interested. They are just waiting for the ticket to be handed over to them.
“If you say you want to contest the election and you believe in the country, in changing the country, you should know what your party stands for on a particular thing.”
However, the ADC spokesperson said the party’s presidential ticket would not be given to any candidate through a special purpose vehicle (SPV).
SPV is a political party used temporarily by politicians simply to secure a platform to contest elections, rather than a party built on shared ideology.
“There are three categories of leaders in the ADC, and I can see them, and I know where I belong,” Abdullahi said.
“There are those who are just looking for a platform to contest an election, an SPV; that is all ADC meant to them.
“There are those who think that the ADC presents an opportunity to wrestle the country from the misgovernance of the APC, and the only reason that they are in the ADC is they don’t want to run for any election, but they want to ensure that this APC governance ends because they believe that they are moving the country in a different direction.
“There is a third category, some of those who belong to the second category, who believe that the ADC coalition gives us the opportunity to build a real political party that is anchored on something, not just an SPV.”
While noting that Obi’s exit from the party is a temporary setback, Abdullahi stressed that the party would bounce back stronger and emerge victorious in the presidential election.
“There is a temporary setback; we are recalibrating, and we are going to come back stronger,” he said.
“Has the possibility of a three-horse race – has it dented our chances? Perhaps, but is it mortally so? No.
“It does not work that way; there are people. Rotimi Amaechi is there, and he came second to Asiwaju in the APC primary, so what I am saying is that the path is now clear for Atiku, and the reason you are saying that is because he won so many votes. Why not?”
