Dumebi Kachikwu, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate within the 2023 elections, has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of undermining the concept of a southern presidency by allegedly searching for the ADC’s platform for his presidential ambition.
Talking at a media briefing on Thursday, July 17, Kachikwu mentioned Atiku’s political actions over time reveal a deep-seated opposition to energy shifting to the South.
“Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a person whose antecedents clearly present he doesn’t consider anybody from the southern a part of Nigeria is deserving of being president of Nigeria, orchestrated this charade for his private profit,” Kachikwu mentioned.
“He virtually truncated President Obasanjo’s return for a second time period as a result of he believed the seat was his. President Jonathan suffered the identical destiny, after which after eight years of late President Buhari as president, the identical Atiku believed it was morally proper for him to be the presidential flag bearer of the PDP within the final presidential elections.”
Kachikwu additional warned that makes an attempt by Atiku and his allies to hijack the ADC had been nothing greater than a self-serving agenda.
“There may be a variety of deliberate misinformation occurring by these brokers of destabilisation masquerading as a political coalition.
“There’s a clear distinction between a political coalition and a political gang. The primary has noble beliefs whereas the gang seeks energy for private good points,” he mentioned.
“What now we have right here at present is a gang unable to outlive exterior political workplace searching for to hijack the ADC as a way to revive their private economies.
“They’re actually on a rescue mission, however it’s a mission to rescue themselves from the cruel {economic} realities which they themselves created for our nation.”
Kachikwu additionally rejected claims that he’s a mouthpiece for President Bola Tinubu.
“They accuse me of being a paid spokesperson for President Tinubu, and my response is that this: it might be an honour to be a spokesperson for the president of the biggest black nation on earth, however sadly that’s not who I’m,” he mentioned.
“Political jobbers who haven’t any seen technique of livelihood are all the time desirous to tar others, however I stay unfazed.”
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He alleged that determined actors had been providing big sums to ADC officers to step down from their positions.
“They’re providing a number of the state chairmen as a lot as ₦20,000,000 to resign their positions, which matches to point out that their intentions should not honourable,” he claimed.
Addressing what he known as a marketing campaign of impersonation, Kachikwu criticised these parading themselves as ADC leaders and dismissed their legitimacy.
“They, with the energetic help of their cohorts within the media, now say they’re the ADC: they don’t seem to be. I can name myself the president of America until I’m blue within the face, but it surely doesn’t make it so.”
He additionally dismissed the declare that solely get together officers can converse on inner issues.
“The imposter who claims he’s their spokesperson made daring to say that I’m merely the previous presidential candidate of the get together and never a celebration official.
“His pedestrian argument is that solely get together officers can problem get together affairs. This is similar elitist ignorance that introduced Nigeria so far the place we consider Nigeria is just for the wealthy and highly effective.
“Bolaji, please be told that each member of our get together, irrespective of how poor you individuals have made them, has a say within the ADC,” he mentioned.
Kachikwu concluded by condemning efforts to stage pretend defections as a part of a wider plan to deceive Nigerians and hijack the get together.
“This pretend coalition is staging occasions in several elements of the nation the place they pay poor Nigerians to say they’re decamping from different events to the ADC.
“That is the everyday technique mesh of those previous politicians, and now we have had sufficient of it. They should sing a brand new music.”
