Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has cleared former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi, and prominent banker Mohammed Hayatu-Deen to participate in its presidential primary slated for Monday, May 25.
The party’s screening committee approved the three aspirants ahead of the crucial primary election expected to determine ADC’s flagbearer for the 2027 presidential race.
A statement by the ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, indicated that the primary would hold in all the wards across the 774 local government areas in the country.
Abdullahi said that a total of 513, 109 and 80 candidates were also cleared for the House of Representatives, Senate and gubernatorial primaries respectively.
However, Hayatu-Deen, while addressing party faithful, at the town hall for ADC members in North Central, yesterday, said the exercise would determine whether the opposition party is actually serious about rescuing the country.
He appealed to party members not to treat the presidential primary as merely an internal affair of the party, but as a decision that could shape the country’s future ahead of the 2027 polls.
The presidential hopeful added that the ADC is facing a defining choice between “serious leadership” and “recycled politics,” and cautioned the opposition party against fielding “a recycled candidate carrying old political burdens and failed ideas.”
His words “Monday is not merely about selecting a candidate. Monday is about determining whether the ADC is truly serious about rescuing Nigeria and offering Nigerians a credible alternative to the failed politics they have endured for too long.”
Positioning himself as the candidate best suited to lead the ADC to victory in the presidential election and foster unity across regional, generational, and religious lines, Hayatu-Deen said he comes into the race without any political baggage.
