Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has held a closed-door meeting with fellow party aspirant Mohammed Hayatu-Deen in a bid to reconcile aggrieved stakeholders after the party's presidential primary.
Meeting at Atiku's Lagos Residence
The meeting took place at Atiku's Lagos residence on Sunday, just days after he secured the ADC presidential ticket and received the party's flag. The post-primary engagement comes amid objections from some contestants regarding the conduct of the exercise.
Objections to Primary Outcome
Hayatu-Deen and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, had rejected the primary results, alleging irregularities and manipulation of the voting process. Hayatu-Deen earlier distanced himself from the process, announcing that he would not attend the official declaration of results.
Atiku's Reconciliation Efforts
The meeting with Hayatu-Deen follows a similar visit by Atiku to Amaechi at his Abuja residence, as part of efforts to unite the party and consolidate support after the contentious primary. Following his emergence as flagbearer, Atiku appealed to dissatisfied aspirants and party members to move past the contest and unite ahead of the 2027 general election.
"I therefore appeal to all those who feel aggrieved to come back to our party and close ranks with the rest of us," Atiku said. He specifically called on Amaechi and Hayatu-Deen to join him in what he described as a collective effort to strengthen democracy and address Nigeria's challenges.
"In particular, I invite Chief Rotimi Amaechi and Alhaji Muhammad Hayatu-Deen to join me in this fight to save our democracy and our country," Atiku added. He maintained that internal party contests should not create lasting divisions, insisting that there were no permanent winners or losers in the primary.
"As I said previously, there are no winners and no losers. Our people look up to us for leadership, and I am ready to lead," he said. Atiku also pledged to work with all party stakeholders to build a stronger ADC ahead of the next election cycle.
