Obi knew nothing about ADC manifesto, only wanted free ticket — Abdullahi

The National Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Bolaji Abdullahi, has alleged that former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, never took interest in the party’s manifesto and was mainly focused on securing an automatic ticket.

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Mr Abdullahi made the claim during an interview on ARISE News, while reacting to Obi’s reported exit from the opposition coalition to the Nigerian Democratic Congress, NDC.

He questioned Obi’s familiarity with the ADC’s policy direction, insisting that the party had spent months developing a clear ideological framework.

“We set up a manifesto committee that worked for about two to three months to develop a document that clearly outlined what we will do differently,” Mr Abdullahi said.

“You may invite His Excellency Peter Obi and ask him: what is the ADC position on fuel subsidy? What is the ADC framework on security? He doesn’t know, because he was never interested,” he added.

According to him, some political actors are more concerned with securing party tickets than engaging with ideological content or policy direction.

“They are just waiting for tickets to be handed to them. If you want to contest elections and change the country, you should know what your party stands for,” he said.

Mr Abdullahi described the ADC as a structured party with a clear ideology capable of offering Nigerians a credible alternative, but accused some politicians of treating it as a platform for personal ambition.

“Everything the government has thrown at the ADC, we have resisted. We have remained committed to rescuing Nigerians from the failure of this government,” he said.

He also referenced earlier coalition discussions, claiming Obi had previously warned that fielding multiple opposition candidates against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would hand victory to the ruling party in 2027.

“So what has changed?” he asked.

Dismissing suggestions that internal disagreements or legal issues triggered Obi’s exit, Mr Abdullahi said the party was only facing “three flimsy cases in court,” which he said could not justify any defection.

He further claimed Obi was given significant influence within the party, including the opportunity to nominate the National Organising Secretary.

“That office is the engine room of the party. It handles congresses, elections and core operations. It is occupied by his nominee,” Mr Abdullahi said.

He also rejected claims that the ADC was skewed in favour of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, insisting that Obi participated in coalition meetings and never raised concerns about bias at the time.

“We met with Peter Obi consistently. He attended coalition meetings regularly. He said he would only join if the ticket was zoned. He took nearly a year to join and never complained of bias,” he added.

Using a metaphor, Mr Abdullahi said political exits often come with shifting justifications.

“When a woman wants to leave a marriage, she gives all kinds of reasons, including being suffocated by too much love. That is what we are seeing now,” he said.

He maintained that while politicians are free to move between parties, they should avoid what he described as “flimsy excuses” when exiting political platforms.