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Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for removing the name of former Senate President David Mark as National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), saying the decision lacks legal basis.
INEC had on April 1 said it would no longer recognise the Mark-led leadership and the faction headed by Nafiu Bala, citing a Court of Appeal directive for parties to maintain the status quo pending resolution of the dispute.
Speaking on BBC Newsday on Saturday, Atiku said the electoral body overstepped its authority by interpreting a court ruling, arguing that such responsibility rests with the judiciary.
He accused INEC of misapplying the law and acting with bias, adding that the move suggested a deliberate attempt to influence the political landscape.
“We are accusing them [INEC] of misinterpreting the law, even though it is not their responsibility to do that. The court has already interpreted the law. We are also accusing them of bias,” he said.
He further argued that the commission’s action contradicts existing Supreme Court rulings, which establish that internal party affairs should be handled by the parties themselves without external interference.
“The commission has not acted according to law because we have a number of cases decided even by the Supreme Court that the internal affairs of political parties are not the prerogative of any agency other than the political parties themselves, but they have ignored the ruling of the highest court in the land,” he said.
Atiku said the removal of the ADC leadership from INEC’s records undermines democratic principles and raises concerns about growing authoritarian tendencies in the system.
He added that there were signs of interference not only in the electoral process but also in the judiciary, warning that such actions threaten the country’s democratic progress.
“We [call it] dictatorship because we have seen evidence of government interference in the electoral process, even in the judicial process in the country,” he said.
The former presidential candidate also expressed concern over worsening insecurity, questioning the government’s ability to effectively deploy available manpower to tackle terrorism and other criminal activities.
He suggested that the persistence of insecurity could be used to intimidate citizens, particularly farmers and business owners, noting that movement across parts of the country has become increasingly unsafe.
Atiku also linked rising unemployment to increasing crime, stating that Nigeria has sufficient resources to reduce joblessness but has failed to do so.
“You cannot travel; there is no security everywhere. It’s absolutely uncalled for. Nigeria has a large population and a large number of young, educated men who could be employed in the security services to protect the country, but that is not happening.
“They scare people and do what they want to do,” he added, referring to the government.
“Unemployment is very prevalent in Nigeria today. There is no basis for that. Nigeria has enough resources to ensure there is minimal unemployment. We have vast unemployed young men and women, and there is a tendency for them to go into crime,” he said.
He called for stronger support for the private sector through incentives that would encourage investment and job creation.
Despite his concerns, Atiku said he remained optimistic that Nigerians would make the right choices in the 2027 elections.
