…Urges Atiku to distance himself from ‘shameless action’
A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Ibrahim Garba Wala, has backed the rejection of the party’s presidential primary process by former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, describing the exercise as flawed and lacking credibility.
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Mr Wala, a supporter of Amaechi’s presidential bid, made his position known in a statement issued on Wednesday following the party’s presidential primary election.
He alleged that the exercise was marred by irregularities, voter disenfranchisement and vote-buying, particularly in Gombe State where he said he monitored the process.
According to him, the primary election failed to reflect democratic values and transparency promised by the party leadership.
“What we witnessed during the primary elections was not a democratic primary; it was a brazen, shameless auction that betrayed every value the ADC promised to uphold,” he said.
Mr Wala alleged that members of the committee deployed to oversee the exercise engaged in acts inconsistent with credible electoral conduct.
He also claimed that the process was manipulated along religious and regional lines in some parts of Gombe State.
The ADC chieftain further alleged that young aspirants who joined the party with hopes of a transparent process were sidelined during the exercise.
Mr Wala called on former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to distance himself from the outcome of the primary, alleging that the process primarily favoured him.
According to him, accepting the outcome could undermine the party’s credibility as an opposition platform seeking democratic reforms in the country.
He said the party could not claim to offer Nigerians an alternative while allegedly engaging in the same practices it accused other political parties of perpetrating.
Mr Amaechi had earlier rejected the outcome of the presidential primary election, saying the process did not meet the standards of transparency and fairness promised by the party leadership.
