Although Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso’s resignation from the African Democratic Congress’ platform was deemed a setback, the party maintained that it was not a fatal blow to its 2027 aspirations.
Bolaji Abdullahi, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, said this on Monday in an interview with Prime Time on Arise News.
In an attempt to create a broad opposition coalition in front of the 2027 general elections, Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, and Kwankwaso, who ran on the New Nigeria Peoples Party platform, had momentarily sided with the ADC.
Since then, both men have migrated to the Nigeria Democratic Congress, where they are repositioning for 2027 and calling for a halt to litigation-driven politics.Although Abdullahi accepted the setback, he insisted that the party’s goals had not changed.
Is this a setback? Yes, is the response. Is it a deadly blow? The objectives are pretty clear, hence the answer is no. “They remain unchanged,” he remarked.
Abdullahi responded that there was no assurance that past electoral performance would inevitably translate into future votes when the host questioned whether the failed coalition attempt, which involved two candidates who together received over seven million votes in 2023, had seriously harmed the ADC’s chances.
Additionally, the spokesperson revealed that he was personally dissatisfied with the development.
For my part, I’m not glad they departed. And since I have my own feelings, I am unable to explain why. He remarked, “I’m not delighted they went.
But the departures, he said, had released the party from an oppressive internal dynamic.
It’s rather relieving. They tried to put us in a pressure cooker, but now we can concentrate on actually doing what needs to be done. I’m not discouraged. “No, no, not at all,” he replied.
Additionally, Abdullahi denied any animosity toward the retiring leaders, stating that the ADC did not view Obi and Kwankwaso as enemies.
We don’t consider them to be our adversaries. He declared, “We will not engage in a dogfight with them.”
Obi’s motives for leaving the ADC included persistent litigation and planned internal problems.
He claimed that the choice was made after careful consideration of Nigeria’s situation and the pressing necessity to save the nation, not out of rage, selfish desire, or convenience.
He compared it to his previous departure from the Labour Party, claiming that both were motivated by the same reason.
He characterized the pattern as serious, planned lawsuits and internal conflicts intended to prevent him from participating in the election process.
Additionally, he cautioned against using democracy as a weapon against the people and against weakening or eliminating opposition parties since, in the end, people suffer when democracy is out of balance.
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