Nigeria: Atiku Meets Hayatu-Deen in Lagos Over ADC Primary Crisis

Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has held a closed-door meeting with fellow aspirant, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, in Lagos as part of reconciliation efforts following the party's controversial presidential primary.

The meeting, which took place on Sunday at Atiku's Lagos residence, comes days after the former vice president emerged as the party's presidential candidate and received the party's flag amid internal disputes over the conduct of the primary.

The post-primary consultations are part of broader efforts to heal divisions within the party following objections raised by some aspirants over alleged irregularities in the voting process.

Hayatu-Deen and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, had reportedly rejected the outcome of the exercise, alleging manipulation and procedural flaws.

Atiku had earlier embarked on a similar reconciliation visit to Amaechi at his Abuja residence in a bid to consolidate support and unite stakeholders ahead of the 2027 general election.

Hayatu-Deen had also distanced himself from the process, announcing his decision not to attend the official declaration of results.

Following his emergence as flagbearer, Atiku called on aggrieved aspirants and party members to put aside differences and rally behind the party.

"I therefore appeal to all those who feel aggrieved to come back to our party and close ranks with the rest of us," he said.

Specifically addressing internal rivals, he added:

"In particular, I invite Chief Rotimi Amaechi and Alhaji Muhammad Hayatu-Deen to join me in this fight to save our democracy and our country," Atiku said.

He stressed that internal party contests should not lead to long-term divisions, noting that there are no permanent winners or losers in political contests.

"As I said previously, there are no winners and no losers. Our people look up to us for leadership, and I am ready to lead," he added.

Atiku further pledged continued engagement with party stakeholders to strengthen unity and reposition the African Democratic Congress ahead of the next election cycle.

Read the original article on Leadership.