Isaac Samuel
A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Babachir David Lawal, has announced his resignation from the party, alleging that its recently concluded primary elections were massively rigged in favour of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
In a strongly worded statement titled “The Kachalla Series Part 1,” Lawal accused the party leadership of manipulating the primary election process to favour what he described as “Kachalla Abubakar Atiku” and his associates.
According to him, results of the primaries were either written or altered to ensure victories for candidates loyal to Atiku, while genuine winners were allegedly replaced by members of what he termed a “syndicate.”
“I am exiting the ADC because its just concluded primaries were at all levels massively rigged in favour of Kachalla Abubakar Atiku,” Lawal said.
He added: “Results were just written or rewritten to favour him and his coven. Even where they allowed some semblance of election to hold, the winners were simply replaced with members of his syndicate. In the real sense it was a disgraceful charade.”
Lawal said his decision to leave the party was informed by his refusal to be associated with what he described as a “rigging machine” ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“I do not intend to be part of Kachalla Atiku’s rigging machine in the 2027 general elections and I cannot avoid doing so if I remain in the party,” he stated.
The former SGF launched a scathing attack on Atiku, accusing him and his supporters of pursuing ethnic and religious interests rather than national development.
He argued that supporting Atiku’s presidential ambition would effectively hand President Bola Tinubu an easy path to re-election in 2027.
“For me, working for Kachalla Atiku means giving Tinubu an automatic ticket to a second term,” he said.
Lawal questioned Atiku’s capacity to govern Nigeria effectively, claiming that the former vice president would perform worse than Tinubu if elected president.
“I believe Tinubu might, comparatively speaking, end up a better Nigerian president than Kachalla Atiku could ever be,” he said.
The former SGF expressed disappointment with northern political actors whom he accused of backing Atiku despite the region’s worsening economic and security challenges.
“I would have thought that when Northerners insist on a northern president they would be thinking of one that will stop the downward spiral into poverty and insecurity, not an ineptocrat like Kachalla Atiku,” he stated.
Lawal said he would temporarily withdraw from active partisan politics and return to his village while consulting with like-minded associates on future political steps.
“While I will be tweaking my plans for the future and consulting with like-minded colleagues on how to stop this incompetent octogenarian from coming close to the presidential office, I will in the meantime retire to my village farm,” he said.
He predicted that Atiku and his supporters would ultimately be defeated by the ruling party’s political machinery in the next election cycle.
