Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has declared that he will not withdraw from the 2027 presidential race, amid growing contest for the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ticket.
Atiku, a presidential aspirant on the platform of the African Democratic Congress, made the declaration in a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by his media aide, Paul Ibe.
In the statement titled “Nigeria’s Democracy Under Siege: Opposition Faces Existential Threat,” Atiku accused the Presidency and the ruling All Progressives Congress of meddling in the internal affairs of the ADC, particularly in the process of choosing its presidential candidate.
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The former vice president alleged that Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his allies were plotting to impose a one-party state on Nigeria by weakening opposition parties. He claimed that agents aligned with the Presidency were attempting to destabilize the ADC from outside by issuing “reckless prescriptions” on its leadership and candidate selection.
Apart from Atiku, checks show that former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi and former APC presidential aspirant Rotimi Amaechi have also indicated interest in contesting the ADC presidential ticket.
Atiku stressed that all aspirants would submit themselves to a presidential convention, noting that the ADC leadership had assured members of an open, transparent and competitive process for selecting its flagbearer. He warned that any call for him to step aside amounted to a betrayal of democratic values and an attempt to advance authoritarian rule.
He further accused the Tinubu administration of pursuing policies that have inflicted economic hardship on Nigerians while shrinking democratic space, adding that the systematic weakening of opposition parties was aimed at leaving the APC in power “by default, not by merit.”
The statement reaffirmed that the ADC is focused on building strong grassroots structures nationwide and remains open to all genuine opposition figures. It concluded that no amount of intimidation or sabotage would derail what it described as a “national rescue mission.”
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