Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has declared that he will not step down for anyone in the contest for the presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Atiku made the declaration in response to calls by members of the Obidient Movement urging presidential aspirants on the ADC platform to step aside for Mr Peter Obi.
This was contained in a statement issued by his Media Aide, Mr Paul Ibe.
The statement criticised comments by some of Obi’s allies, including Prof. Pat Utomi and Aisha Yesufu, who had rejected the idea of Obi emerging as a vice-presidential candidate in the proposed coalition.
Atiku described the calls for his withdrawal from the race as dangerous to Nigeria’s democracy.
“Any call — overt or covert — for Atiku to ‘step aside’ is a gift to authoritarian ambition and a betrayal of the Nigerian people,” the statement read.
The former Vice President accused the Bola Tinubu-led administration of deliberately weakening opposition parties in a bid to impose what he described as a “creeping, de facto one-party state.”
“For nearly three years, Nigerians have endured one of the harshest periods in recent history — an era defined by punishing economic policies and a shrinking democratic space,” the statement said, adding that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had sought to eliminate political alternatives through systematic pressure on opposition forces.
According to Atiku, the ADC was adopted by opposition figures as a platform to resist this trend and offer Nigerians a credible political alternative.
He further alleged that some individuals close to the Presidency were plotting to destabilise the ADC.
