2027: Atiku alleges plot to scuttle Sokoto campaign flag-off; Says ADC ‘ll not bow to intimidation
2027: Atiku alleges plot to scuttle Sokoto campaign flag-off; Says ADC ‘ll not bow to intimidation
By Idun Maximus
African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has raised the alarm about an alleged plot by the government to scuttle the flag-off of his 2027 presidential campaign scheduled for Wednesay in Sokoto.
Atiku, while speaking at a press briefing, in Abuja, on Tuesday, stated that information at his disposal indicates that Department of State Services (DSS) is allegedly recruiting people to stage a protest in Sokoto, so as to give the All Progressives Congress(APC) controlled government in the state an opportunity to declare curfew in the state.
The former Vice President who noted that the plot of the APC is allegedly to create a one party, said the ADC would not be intimated, stating that the party would proceed with its campaign flag-off today
According to him, “What is unfolding in Sokoto is not ordinary political competition. It is a calculated campaign to frustrate the African Democratic Congress, obstruct our campaign and deny Nigerians the freedom to choose. Public facilities that should be available to every political party for legitimate campaign activities have been blocked. Logistical support has been withheld. These are not harmless administrative delays. They are deliberate attempts to deny the ADC a level playing field.
“More disturbing still, the information available to us is that the leadership of the Department of State Services is recruiting people to stage protests in Sokoto. The objective is to create disorder, give the APC controlled state government a pretext to impose a curfew and prevent our campaign take off from holding as scheduled.
“We know where some of these protesters are assembled: an office behind Zenith Bank on Koko Road. Trucks are stationed there and dispatched to key points, including the roundabout. These mobilised protesters are causing gridlock. Commuters are being threatened and, in some cases, beaten. Some of the protesters have moved away from the roundabout to find shade.
“This is not intelligence work. It is political interference dressed in official uniform. Security agencies exist to protect Nigerians and uphold the law, not to recruit protesters or help a political party manufacture a crisis. I call on every officer involved to stop immediately and return to the constitutional duty of impartial service.”
The ADC candidate, while noting that the 2027 general election is a defining moment for the country’s democracy, stated that the present administration has devoted so much energy in the last three and half years towards allegedly weakening opposition, than it has devoted towards solving national challenges.
He said “For three and a half years, the Tinubu administration has devoted too much energy to weakening credible opposition and too little to solving the problems facing Nigerians. It has pursued a politics of absorption and intimidation, while drawing former opposition figures into the APC and narrowing the space for political competition. The aim is to reduce Nigeria to a one party state in all but name.
“The government is afraid of the people’s verdict. It has unleashed a crushing cost of living crisis and now appears determined to frustrate Nigerians’ democratic right to choose a different path. Food, transport, fuel, electricity and other essentials have become unaffordable for millions. Families are struggling to feed their children, pay school fees and keep their businesses alive. That is the record this government should be defending before the people, instead of trying to stop a rally.”
Atiku stated that the APC should have taken the outcome of it campaign flag-off in Kaduna as a warning that Nigerian’s have allegedly lost confidence in the ruling party, rather than allegedly attempting to intimidate the opposition.
“The APC has still not recovered from the abysmal failure of its last rally in Kaduna. It should have taken that as a warning that Nigerians are withdrawing their confidence. Instead, it has chosen intimidation and obstruction. These are the last kicks of a dying horse. The more this government tries to silence the people, the clearer it becomes that it has already lost their confidence.
“The ADC will resist every gimmick, administrative roadblock and underhand manoeuvre designed to exclude the opposition or impose a one party reality on Nigeria. We will not be intimidated into silence or irrelevance. Our campaign will proceed, and I will be in Sokoto tomorrow, God willing, to address the good people of the state,” the former Vice President stated.
