The spokesman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Bolaji Abdullahi, has clarified why top opposition figures, including former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, and former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, have yet to formally defect from their respective parties despite aligning with the new ADC coalition.
Naijaonpoint reports that Abdullahi provided the explanation while speaking on Arise TV’s Morning Show on Thursday, noting that many high-profile politicians are currently involved in ongoing electoral processes scheduled ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Citing Nasir El-Rufai specifically, Abdullahi revealed that the former governor and his political group are presently backing candidates contesting elections under the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and have already purchased nomination forms on that platform.
Abdullahi said, “There are elections taking place before 2027 that these parties are engaged in, that people like Mallam Nasir El-Rufai have his group engaged in. So they have bought forms on the platform of those parties.
“So it is only sensible that you allow them to contest… on the grounds of those parties. And when they are done with that… everybody in principle is in ADC.”
Abdullahi insisted that despite current affiliations, all involved in the coalition are united by a shared mission: preventing Nigeria from sliding into what he described as a “one-party civilian dictatorship.”
He said, “It is clear what we are doing is very clear to us. Every single person that believes that Nigeria cannot be reduced to a one-party state is in this coalition.
“If anyone has problems with that, that we should watch and allow Nigeria to become a one-party civilian dictatorship, then they can begin to throw up all this.”
The former minister acknowledged that the coalition’s path to 2027 would be fraught with obstacles, but maintained that the team was prepared for the challenges ahead.
“We do not think it will be a smooth ride. We think it will be bumpy, but we are ready to deal with it,” he said.