Former SGF defects three months after accusing ADC of manipulating its presidential primary
Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has defected from the African Democratic Congress, ADC, to the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, three months after resigning from the party over allegations of manipulation of its presidential primary.
Lawal announced his defection in Abuja on Tuesday, where he declared his support for the NDC presidential ticket of Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking after he was formally received into the opposition party, Lawal urged Nigerians concerned about insecurity, hunger and other challenges facing the country to support the NDC.
He said Nigerians who sympathise with those affected by insecurity, hunger, ignorance and disease should support a political platform he said represented the country’s future.
Lawal said he was looking forward to the 2027 elections and the emergence of Obi as President and Kwankwaso as Vice President.
Receiving the former SGF into the party, NDC National Leader, Senator Seriake Dickson, described Lawal as an experienced political mobiliser and activist.
Dickson said Lawal’s experience in Nigerian politics would be valuable to the party and its campaigns ahead of the 2027 elections.
He said Lawal would oversee NDC activities and campaigns in the North-East, while also providing guidance to candidates and campaign teams in the region.
Lawal’s defection followed his resignation from the ADC about three months ago.
At the time, he alleged that the party’s presidential primary had been manipulated to favour former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
In his resignation statement, which he shared on his official Facebook page, Lawal said he could no longer remain in a party whose primary process he considered fundamentally flawed.
He alleged that results from the primary were altered to favour Atiku and his supporters, claiming that declared winners were allegedly replaced even in areas where voting had taken place.
Lawal’s move to the NDC now places him within the political structure backing the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket ahead of the 2027 general elections.