2027: S’West ADC leaders revolt against Atiku - Punch Newspapers

Many leaders of the African Democratic Congress in the South-West have expressed dissatisfaction with what they described as the marginalisation of the party’s structure in the region by the ADC presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, ahead of the 2027 presidential election. The ADC leaders, including some state chairmen and governorship candidates, alleged that Atiku had been conducting his political activities in the region through his friends and allies, while leaving the party structure sidelined as presidential campaign activities prepared to gather momentum. Sunday PUNCH gathered that the development was causing disaffection among party members and contributing to the slow pace of campaign activities for Atiku in the region. The South-West, regarded as a stronghold of President Bola Tinubu, remains an important battleground for Atiku as he seeks to consolidate his political structure. In the 2023 election, Tinubu won Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti and Ondo states, while Atiku, then the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, won Osun. Peter Obi of the Labour Party won Lagos. Our correspondent learnt that the governorship candidates and some other ADC leaders convened a meeting in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, on September 4, where they formally complained to the party’s National Secretary, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, that Atiku was not carrying them along in his political activities in the region. At the meeting, the candidates reportedly sought clarification from the ADC national secretariat on whether Atiku was interested in engaging the party structure in his political activities or preferred to deal with his friends and allies. One of the governorship candidates who attended the meeting told Sunday PUNCH on Thursday that almost all the ADC leaders in the South-West complained about Atiku’s alleged sidelining of the party structure. The candidate, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said little had changed since they raised their concerns. He said, “The meeting was hot. We told the national secretariat, through Aregbesola, that Atiku must respect the party structure and channel his campaign through it. “Many of us at the meeting complained about the sidelining of the party in the South-West by our presidential candidate. We rejected his [Atiku’s] practice of using his friends and loyalists to run political activities that the party should ordinarily have been engaged in. “We insisted that the party structures that produced all the governorship, national and state assembly candidates for the 2027 elections are the genuine party structures with which Atiku must engage.” An ADC leader, who also attended the meeting, disclosed that Atiku was compelled to hold a virtual meeting with South-West ADC leaders the following day, September 5, where he reportedly affirmed his loyalty to the party and promised to address the issues raised. The ADC leader said Atiku asked each state to submit five names of party members to be appointed to his campaign committee. “He (Atiku) promised that there would be a change and that the party would henceforth be carried along in his political activities. But little has really changed since then,” he said. Some ADC insiders in the South-West also told Sunday PUNCH that there were indications that Atiku might not want to spend more on political activities in the region. A party official disclosed to one of our correspondents that the ADC presidential candidate had refused to fund the party. “You can imagine a situation where the party chairmen in the six South-West states went to Abuja to attend a meeting with him (Atiku) on September 17 and our presidential candidate refused to give them transport fare. The chairmen are not happy with him for that. Maybe he is just targeting his 25 per cent in the region,” he said.Make PUNCH part of your everyday experience.Add us to your Preferred Sources Similarly, an ADC House of Assembly candidate in Ekiti, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Sunday PUNCH that Atiku’s campaign lacked visibility because the party had not been engaged. According to him, Atiku had not paid sufficient attention to the party in the region, a development he described as discouraging. “You can see nothing is happening in the South-West ADC. Everywhere is dull, and that is because the party has not been engaged by our presidential candidate. Only his friends have been involved in his campaign activities,” he said. Speaking on the alleged sidelining of the party in the zone, the Chairman of the ADC Local Government Chairmen in Lagos State, Adewole Ijaogbomo, said some individuals were championing Atiku’s campaign activities in the state. He called on Atiku to address the situation as a matter of priority. “Most of the people championing Atiku’s cause in the South-West, especially in Lagos State, are just positioning themselves to grab the campaign fund for their selfish interests. The main party leaders are not being carried along in all their activities. “A few people are trying to take over the campaign activities. The majority of the party leaders are not involved in Lagos State. The real ADC leaders are being excluded from Atiku’s political activities. I see that Atiku doesn’t want to offend anybody, but he must address this matter urgently,” he said.   S’West ADC chairman backs Atiku However, the South-West Chairman of the ADC, Akin Omole, absolved Atiku of any wrongdoing, suggesting that the former vice-president could not abandon his friends for party politics. According to him, the ADC is a coalition with Atiku’s allies across the country, which he said was necessary to secure victory for the party in the 2027 elections. “On the issue of whether he’s carrying them along, you know this is a coalition. We came from different political parties. We cannot deny the fact that there have been some old alliances, people who have been together in some political parties before now. “We should not suffer the illusion of not agreeing with the reality of being a friend to a candidate. It happens everywhere. But I want to tell you, we are a family. I’m satisfied with my involvement in the party. Nobody takes away what is legitimately mine. Tinubu’s cloned voice and Pate’s sanitiser duty Tax Ombud targets nationwide reach through NIPOST partnership Reactions as Tinubu Chinese tablets go viral “Every candidate must develop a relationship outside the party, and we must agree that it’s all these factors that contribute to the success of a candidate. So, we cannot push his friends away from him,” he said. Omole, however, confirmed the Ibadan meeting, explaining that it was held to discuss how the South-West could be delivered for Atiku. “The Ibadan meeting was about how to win the election in the South-West. It’s about planning. It was the outcome of that meeting that necessitated our meeting with him (Atiku) in Abuja. “If there is anybody who has any complaint, let him channel it through the party. But to the best of my knowledge, that is not a loud complaint. There could be pockets of complaint, but it’s not loud enough to constitute a problem for the party,” the ADC chieftain added. Asked if Atiku paid their transport fare for the Abuja meeting, Omole said, “We’re a political party, made up of many people. We have passed the era where somebody will be held responsible for the fortune of a political party. We have passed the era of moneybags where the candidate should bear all financial burdens of the party. “We went to Abuja not for him to provide us with transport. We are party officials. We have our source of funding within our states. So, it’s not a question of having any expectation of giving us money for transport. If anybody had that in mind before going to Abuja, I’m not aware of that. As the leader of the delegation, we have no reason to ask for transport because the party is not about an individual.” Similarly, the Lagos State ADC Chairman, George Ashiru, explained that the perceived delay in engaging party members in the South-West did not amount to sidelining, saying everyone would be brought on board when a campaign committee was constituted for each state. He stated that the constitution of the campaign council should not be used as a yardstick for measuring Atiku’s engagement with party leaders in political activities. Ashiru said, “Some people are so focused on money coming from the presidential candidates. Whether there is money or not, there is this frenzy that time is going, and they begin to wonder: what’s happening? We are not hearing anything. And instead of them to call the man himself and let him use his own mouth to announce it, they will be speculating and smearing other people’s names. “These people are just anxious, thinking time is going. Atiku has yet to flag off his campaign and yet to announce his campaign coordinators in all the states. “Campaign council is an independent institution; the members are not compulsorily party executives. It is not normal to put party executives in the campaign committee, which is a strategy organisation. The party is to give them support; that is how it is done. At the appropriate time, what is due to the party will be given to it.”   Atiku, Aregbesola not fighting – Osun ADC Meanwhile, the Osun State chapter of the ADC dismissed insinuations that there was a frosty relationship between Aregbesola and Atiku. The insinuations became rife following the composition of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, announced on September 25. Aregbesola, a key political figure in the South-West, was not listed among its members, an omission that fuelled speculation about his role in Atiku’s presidential campaign. However, the Osun ADC Publicity Secretary, Oluwaseun Abosede, said there was no rancour between the duo. Abosede, who spoke with Sunday PUNCH on Friday, also allayed fears over the slow pace of party activities in the South-West, a few months before the presidential poll, saying the ADC had a roadmap for its campaign in the region. “There is no rancour between Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. They are fine, and there is no leadership crisis within the ADC as some people may want the public to believe. “On the question of what Aregbesola and ADC South-West are currently doing, there is a deliberate political roadmap in place. The work is ongoing, with conscious efforts to engage and bring together interest groups, build relationships, strengthen political structures and widen the party’s reach across the South-West,” he said. According to him, campaign activities would begin at the appropriate time. He added, “Politics is not always about making noise or rushing to announce every move. Sometimes, the most consequential work takes place quietly, through consultation, organisation, relationship-building and the consolidation of structures. “That is what ADC South-West is focused on under Ogbeni’s leadership. We are working according to our roadmap, and when the time comes for the full political picture to emerge, the scale of the work will speak for itself. “I will therefore urge observers and political commentators not to confuse the absence of constant public displays with the absence of political activity. There is a process underway, and we are confident in the direction we are taking.”   Atiku’s aide denies allegations Reacting to the allegations, Atiku’s Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, dismissed claims that the former VP had sidelined state party executives in the South-West. He said, “The claim that state party executives in the South-West have been sidelined is untrue. The state coordinators and their respective campaign councils have neither been announced nor inaugurated at the state level. There is therefore no state campaign structure that has been constituted and then excluded.” He maintained that Atiku respected the party’s leadership and structures, dismissing suggestions that he had been conducting political activities outside the established party framework. “Atiku is a party man who respects the party’s structure, its members and its leaders. The suggestion that he has been running his political activities by bypassing them is opposition conjecture, not a genuine complaint from our members,” Shaibu added. Kindly share this story:

All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

ATTENTION NIGERIANS: You can now comfortably earn US Dollars when you acquire premium domains for as low as $3000 and profit $15,000-$35,000. Ideal for professionals like Entrepreneurs, Doctors, Civil/Public servants, IT Experts, Accountants ETC. CLICK HERE TO START.

Stay informed and ahead of the curve! Follow The Punch Newspaper on WhatsApp for real-time updates, breaking news, and exclusive content. Don't miss a headline – join now!

Stay in the know—fast. Get instant alerts, breaking headlines, and exclusive stories with the Punch News App. Download now and never miss a beat.