Babachir Lawal Accused of Rigging ADC Primary in Adamawa

Dr. Nichola Msheliza, the chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) electoral committee in Adamawa State, accused Babachir Lawal, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, of attempting to rig the party's recent presidential primary.

Msheliza claimed that Lawal sought to influence the results in favor of businessman Moham Hayatu-Deen, threatening to release evidence to support these allegations. Lawal reportedly contacted Msheliza to demand a reversal of the results from the Hong Local Government Area, where Atiku Abubakar won convincingly with 11,991 votes against Hayatu-Deen's 2,493 votes and Rotimi Amaechi's 377 votes.

Msheliza alleged that Lawal unilaterally attempted to dissolve the local electoral committee and set up a parallel structure to conduct an illegitimate exercise in several local government areas. He also claimed that Lawal's actions were inconsistent with the integrity expected from public office holders and stated that further details and documentary evidence would be released soon.