Former Rivers State Governor and presidential aspirant of the African Democratic Congress, Rotimi Amaechi, on Tuesday rejected the outcome of the party’s presidential primary election, describing the results collated from across the country as “concocted.”
Amaechi, one of the three contenders for the ADC presidential ticket alongside former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and economist Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, announced his position in a statement posted on his verified X handle, @ChibuikeAmaechi.
The former Minister of Transportation alleged that widespread voter disenfranchisement marred the exercise conducted across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory on Monday.
“Following reports of widespread voter disenfranchisement in most parts of the country during the African Democratic Congress Presidential Primaries yesterday, I unequivocally reject the concocted results being announced.
“I had initially stated that I would only accept the outcome of the primaries if the process was free, fair, and transparent, and I stand by my word. I will not accept results from a process that does not reflect the values that the ADC had pledged to uphold, to rescue Nigerians from the impunity and gross mismanagement that our country is currently facing in the hands of the ruling party,” he wrote.
Amaechi further claimed that a significant number of party members were denied the opportunity to participate in the exercise.
“There’s no way that about eighty per cent of members of the party were not allowed to vote, and you expect me to accept such results. Then what makes us different from the others?” he asked.
The former governor said the ADC was founded on the premise of offering Nigerians a credible political alternative and warned against practices capable of undermining the party’s integrity.
“The whole idea of the ADC was to give the Nigerian people a platform, to amplify the voices of the downtrodden, and make Nigeria a better place for everyone irrespective of backgrounds, ethnicity, or religion.
“A party that criticises the ruling APC and INEC for vote buying, rigging and writing of results, cannot be engaged in vote buying, writing of results, and other electoral malpractices that leads to the disenfranchisement of voters who are party members. This is not acceptable,” he stated.
Amaechi’s rejection of the exercise came barely four hours after fellow aspirant Hayatu-Deen announced his decision to boycott the final collation and declaration ceremony in Abuja over alleged widespread irregularities.
On his part, Hayatu-Deen boycotted the collation and declaration ceremony citing alleged vote rigging.
Taking to his verified X handle, @Mohayatudeen, the economist-turned-politician said, “I will not be attending the announcement of the ADC Presidential Election Results today. I am concerned by reports from across the country of widespread vote rigging, some of which I myself (sic) observed, and will therefore be taking advice on my next steps.”
However, Hayatu-Deen did not pointedly name those behind the rigging.
