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The 2023 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dumebi Kachikwu, has alleged that northern political elites are pressuring former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2027 election in a bid to weaken the chances of President Bola Tinubu, Labour Party’s Peter Obi, and other southern contenders.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, August 8, Kachikwu claimed that some ADC coalition leaders had told Obi he could not secure northern votes as an Igbo man and should instead settle for a vice-presidential slot under the 2023 PDP candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
He further alleged that the ADC’s legal team had filed petitions against what he called the “unlawful takeover” of the party by former Senate President David Mark and ex-Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola, in support of Atiku’s ambitions. Since the ADC’s unveiling on July 1 as an opposition coalition platform, Kachikwu said, divisions between the North and South-East had deepened.
According to him, some northern leaders have persistently criticised Tinubu’s administration while spreading “deliberate falsehoods” against all southern presidential hopefuls. He alleged that Jonathan was being positioned to win Obi’s support, with an offer to make him Coordinating Minister of the Economy.
“In all these, Nigerians are the losers because meritocracy has been thrown out the door,” Kachikwu said. “Atiku Abubakar and a few northern elites who have held power for decades but failed to address poverty and undereducation in the North are at it again.”
Kachikwu urged Nigerians to reject Atiku and his allies, accusing them of lacking commitment to justice and fairness. He claimed Atiku’s associates had strategically seized control of ADC structures nationwide, turning the coalition into “a one-man power grab.”
Reacting, Atiku’s media aide, Paul Ibe, dismissed the allegations, describing Kachikwu as “an agent of Tinubu’s APC.” Ibe described Atiku as a detribalised Nigerian who “does not see religion or region” and accused the Tinubu administration of inflicting hardship on the country. He insisted the ADC coalition was united and aimed at providing Nigerians with a credible alternative to the APC.
Similarly, ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi maintained that the coalition was on “solid legal ground” and challenged anyone with proof of constitutional violations to present it.
