Former Nigerian Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has said no presidential aspirant in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) will withdraw from the race, rejecting calls for candidates to step aside in favour of Peter Obi.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Mr Abubakar dismissed suggestions from some supporters of Mr Obi that other aspirants should step down to allow a consensus candidate to emerge within the opposition coalition.
The comments follow remarks by several of Mr Obi’s allies, including Professor Pat Utomi and activist Aisha Yesufu, who have opposed the idea of Mr Obi serving as a vice-presidential candidate in any coalition arrangement.
Mr Abubakar, who is seeking the ADC presidential ticket, described calls for him to withdraw as harmful to Nigeria’s democratic process.
“Any call, overt or covert, for Atiku to ‘step aside’ is a gift to authoritarian ambition and a betrayal of the Nigerian people,” the statement said.
The former vice-president accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of shrinking democratic space and deliberately weakening opposition parties in an effort to impose what he described as a “creeping, de facto one-party state”.
“For nearly three years, Nigerians have endured one of the harshest periods in recent history, an era defined by punishing economic policies and shrinking democratic space,” the statement added.
He alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was exerting pressure on opposition parties to eliminate political alternatives, and claimed that the ADC had been adopted by opposition figures as a platform to resist that trend.
According to Mr Abubakar, individuals aligned with the presidency were now attempting to interfere in the ADC’s internal processes, particularly the selection of its presidential candidate.
“Let it be stated plainly: the ADC is on a national rescue mission,” he said, adding that the party was committed to an open, transparent and competitive process.
Mr Abubakar warned against what he described as external interference, insisting that the party’s leadership would not tolerate intimidation or sabotage.