“80% Of Members Were Excluded”- Rotimi Amaechi Rejects ADC Presidential Primary, Alleges Massive Rigging

• Former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi has rejected the outcome of the ADC presidential primary election, alleging widespread irregularities, voter exclusion, and manipulation.
• He described the process as lacking credibility, while fellow aspirant Mohammed Hayatu-Deen also distanced himself from the exercise over alleged vote rigging.

Former Minister of Transportation and presidential aspirant of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rotimi Amaechi, has rejected the outcome of the party’s presidential primary election, describing the process as compromised and lacking credibility.

The ADC conducted its nationwide direct primary election on Monday ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

The contest featured notable aspirants including former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, and Amaechi.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, Amaechi accused the party leadership of manipulating the process and excluding a large number of party members from participating in the exercise.

According to him, the results being announced do not reflect the actual votes cast during the primary election.

“I made it clear that I would only accept a free, fair, and transparent process, but what happened fell far below that standard,” Amaechi stated.

The former Rivers State governor alleged that nearly 80 percent of eligible party members were denied the opportunity to vote, questioning the legitimacy of the entire process.

He further argued that the ADC, which presents itself as an alternative to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), should not engage in the same electoral practices it publicly condemns.

Amaechi said it was unacceptable for the party to criticise vote buying and result manipulation while allegedly carrying out similar acts during its own internal election.

Meanwhile, collation officers have reportedly begun arriving at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja, the designated venue for the official announcement of the primary results.

Early results from the exercise reportedly showed former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar leading in more than 10 states, including Gombe, Abia, Sokoto, and Zamfara.

In a related development, another aspirant, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, also rejected the process and announced that he would not attend the final declaration of results.

Hayatu-Deen reportedly described the figures emerging from several wards as “concocted,” insisting that the election failed to meet basic standards of transparency and fairness.