The African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential primary election has been marred by controversy and allegations of widespread irregularities, leading to the rejection of the process by key aspirants, Rotimi Amaechi and Mohammed Hayatu-Deen. The party, which had suspended the collation of results late Tuesday night after announcing figures from 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), resumed the exercise on Wednesday.

Despite former Vice President Atiku Abubakar maintaining a clear lead ahead of Amaechi and Hayatu-Deen in the announced results, both Amaechi, a former Minister of Transportation, and economist Hayatu-Deen had earlier expressed their condemnation of the primaries. Amaechi reportedly raised concerns about the exercise's credibility on his X account even before the official announcement, stating that the process lacked transparency and fairness.

Adding to the criticisms, Comrade Ibrahim Garba (IG) Wala, a chieftain of the ADC who monitored the primary election in Gombe State, vehemently condemned the process, describing it as a "brazen, shameless auction" that betrayed the party's democratic values. Wala highlighted that despite the ADC's past criticisms of other ruling parties and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over vote-buying and manipulation, similar conduct allegedly played out within its own internal election.

From his observations in Gombe, Wala presented a detailed account of alleged irregularities and voter disenfranchisement: He noted the influx of "hungry committee members" who behaved like "an army of hungry political mercenaries," openly engaging in corrupt practices. Wala also revealed the existence of a "Hotel Situation Room" where, he claimed, committee leadership retired to finish manipulative work behind closed doors, and where he was personally approached with an offer to meet them to secure what he needed.

Furthermore, Wala accused the party leadership of "weaponizing religion and region against the poor" in Gombe, a diverse state. He claimed the process was engineered to ensure only a homogeneous crowd of predominantly Muslim men and women were present in several mixed-faith wards, deliberately excluding Christians and representatives of other native tribes. This, he suggested, confirmed rumors of traditional leaders and religious groups being rewarded to achieve a desired outcome. He also pointed to a "provocative regional agenda," where top party officials allegedly taunted stakeholders with regional challenges, questioning if a candidate like Atiku Abubakar would ever receive votes in Amaechi’s home state.

The ADC chieftain also decried the "crude, audacious vote-buying" that was openly displayed and carried out with complete audacity, alongside the "victimization of new aspirants" who, he said, joined the party with democratic ideals only to become victims of old-school election rigging.

Wala explicitly stated that the primary beneficiary of these "corrupt, engineered primaries is Alhaji Atiku Abubakar," asserting that this systemic manipulation contributed to several prominent politicians leaving the party. He characterized Atiku's alleged involvement as a desperate attempt to secure a four-year tenure.

Consequently, Wala urged Atiku Abubakar to publicly distance himself from the outcome, warning that accepting such a "forbidden fruit" would undermine the credibility of the party's internal democracy and its promise of a rescue mission for Nigeria. He made a poignant appeal on the sacred day of Eid, reminding Atiku of ultimate accountability before the Almighty. Wala concluded by joining Amaechi in rejecting results "written in hotel rooms" and affirming a commitment to a fair, transparent, and just Nigeria, declaring that the fight to rescue democracy from "political merchants" had just begun.