Amid the uncertainty surrounding the future of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), elder statesman Alhaji Buba Galadima, has stated that the party will not produce candidates for the 2027 general elections.
Recall that months back, ADC had many prospects, drawing most of the opposition politicians in the country. But reports have emerged that Mr Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso will be defecting to the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, early next week.”
However, a lawsuit by Nafiu Bala, who parades as the factional National Chairman of the Party has put the ADC on edge. On Thursday, the Supreme Court delivered judgement in the party’s dispute.
However, many people have warned that the judgement is a trap and that candidates on the ADC platform would end up disqualified. Buba Galadima, a former chieftain of the New Nigerian Party, NNPP, is one of those sharing that opinion.
He said there is a plot to use litigation to ensure the party does not produce any candidate, stressing that he had warned against this over a year ago. The elder statesman spoke on Saturday at the Obi-Kwankwaso Movement summit in Abuja. He confirmed that Peter Obi and Kwankwaso are already concluding plans for an alternative.
Galadima said: “I said this since one and a half years ago in the press that Tinubu will try to stifle the political parties, that Tinubu wants to run as a sole candidate in Nigeria, and today, it is happening. The judgements that were delivered on Wednesday and Thursday, to any clever man, was a trap set for ADC to which most of us here belong.
“The Supreme Court tells you go back to the first court of instance. That is the high court. You file brief your opponent files a brief, the court sets a date, can that be done before the end of May?
“So if it can’t be done and successfully, the judge delivers a judgment before the end of May, can the ADC have a candidate? Do we need a soothsayer to tell us that it’s not possible? We don’t have to. So some of us believe that we have to look for alternatives.
“And in looking for the alternatives we heard what they are doing. One of the alternatives we were considering they had gone to plant two presidential candidates that will make it impossible for the party to arrive at consensus. That is one.
“The other alternative of producing a candidate is direct primaries. And direct primaries is impossible for any political party in this country, including the APC itself. But they are in power, they can call people and direct them to step down for their anointed candidates.
“And the story is that you cannot hold direct primaries in 8000 plus wards across the country, and even if you start to do that, they can send the security people and hooligans to go and disrupt the process such that the opposition party will never be allowed to produce a candidate.
“So their dream of a single candidate for the presidency and for some governors, will now be achieved. They thought we are fools. And the other party, the other party that we are looking at, they have already sat o and took a decision that they will go to court as early as Monday if they are to work to try to stop us from from going there.
“I assure you that if you invest your trust in us as leaders, we must find a way for getting our we ourselves in the ballot. I’m sure our op are smart, as from Monday, when Our leaders declare on which platform they will run…”
