Phrak Shaibu, an aide to African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, has strongly criticized former Secretary to the Government of the Federation Babachir Lawal for alleging that the ADC presidential primary was marred by rigging. In a statement on Monday, Lawal claimed the primary was manipulated in favor of Atiku, prompting his decision to leave the party.
Shaibu dismisses allegations as baseless
Reacting, Shaibu, who serves as Atiku's Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, dismissed Lawal's assertions, emphasizing that the election reflected the genuine will of party members. “Having chosen to malign a democratic process, insult thousands of ADC members nationwide, and make grave allegations without presenting a shred of evidence, it has become necessary to set the record straight,” Shaibu said. “The truth is straightforward. The ADC presidential primaries were conducted across thousands of wards and produced a clear and decisive outcome. What Mr Lawal has offered Nigerians is not evidence. He has produced no documents, no verifiable facts, no credible witnesses, and no proof whatsoever to support his sensational allegations.”
Contradictions in Lawal's stance
Atiku's aide accused Lawal of failing to explain how the same primary process he now dismisses as fraudulent somehow produced a result he appears willing to accept in Adamawa State, where his cousin, Omar Suleiman, emerged as the ADC governorship candidate. “Nigerians are entitled to ask whether the process was only credible when it favoured his family and only rigged when it produced a presidential candidate he did not support,” he said.
Lawal's past controversies highlighted
Shaibu also pointed out the “grass-cutting scandal” involving the former SGF under the past administration led by late former President Muhammadu Buhari. He further stated, “What appears to have truly unsettled Mr Lawal is not the conduct of the primaries but the outcome. Democracy guarantees participation, not victory. One cannot celebrate democracy when it produces a preferred result and suddenly condemn it as rigged when it does not.”
Response to religious hegemony claim
Lawal's accusation that Atiku is a religious hegemonist was also faulted. Shaibu said, “Having failed to persuade ADC members to embrace his preferred candidate, he now seeks refuge in the divisive politics of identity,” adding that such a move is fruitless because “It creates no jobs, lowers no food prices, secures no communities, and offers no pathway out of the national crisis.”
Shaibu concluded by emphasizing that the Nigerian people know Atiku, his record in public service, and his achievements in business. “They know his commitment to national unity and economic reform,” he stressed. “The 2027 election will not be decided by tantrums, ethnic dog whistles, recycled grievances, or revisionist history. It will be decided by the Nigerian people. And no amount of post-primary bitterness can alter that reality.”
