Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has dismissed allegations made by former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, regarding the conduct of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential primary, describing the claims as unfounded and driven by political disappointment.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said Lawal’s recent television interview was filled with accusations that lacked credible evidence.
According to the statement, Nigerians who watched the interview witnessed “a man armed with outrage but bereft of evidence; rich in allegations but poor in facts.”
Shaibu said the statement represented Atiku’s final response to the controversy surrounding the party’s primary election.
The former Vice President argued that despite making serious allegations about the conduct of the exercise, Lawal failed to present any documentary or verifiable proof to support his claims.
“Mr Lawal spent nearly an hour making grave accusations about the conduct of the ADC presidential primary.
Yet he failed to produce a single piece of verifiable evidence. No document. No petition. No result sheet. No witness statement. No recording. Nothing.
“For a man who repeatedly insisted that proof was ‘everywhere,’ his performance was a masterclass in making extraordinary allegations without meeting the elementary obligation of substantiating them.
“He arrived with accusations. He left with accusations. In between, the evidence never arrived,” the statement said.
Atiku further alleged that Lawal’s comments reflected the frustration of a political actor whose preferred candidate did not emerge victorious during the primary election.
According to him, Lawal had openly supported another aspirant before the conclusion of the process and had publicly campaigned for that candidate.
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The statement also challenged what it described as contradictions in Lawal’s arguments, particularly his portrayal of Atiku as both politically irrelevant and powerful enough to manipulate the outcome of the primary.
“According to his own account, Atiku was inactive, unpopular and absent from the field. Yet Nigerians are simultaneously expected to believe that this same supposedly dormant politician somehow orchestrated a nationwide conspiracy across 8,809 wards.
“Such arguments are not merely implausible; they are insulting to the intelligence of party members whose democratic choices he now seeks to invalidate simply because they did not favour his preferred candidate,” the statement added.
Atiku’s camp further accused Lawal of deliberately promoting narratives aimed at undermining the former Vice President’s political standing, particularly among Christian communities in the Middle Belt and other regions where he enjoys significant support.
Responding to Lawal’s reported assertion that Atiku had “absolutely nothing” to his credit, the statement said the former Vice President’s contributions to Nigeria’s development were well documented.
It highlighted his role in the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector, economic reforms, private sector growth, educational development and broader national progress.
The statement concluded by insisting that no amount of criticism or political bitterness could alter the facts surrounding the ADC primary or Atiku’s political record.
“As far as we are concerned, this is the final response to Mr Lawal’s increasingly desperate attempts to remain politically relevant through sensationalism and character assassination.
“Nigerians have heard him. Nigerians have seen him. And Nigerians have judged for themselves.
“The facts remain unchanged. The truth remains intact. And no amount of bitterness can alter either,” the statement said.