Atiku Abubakar vows to stay in Nigeria election race

Nigerian presidential hopeful Atiku Abubakar vowed Friday to stay in the country's forthcoming election, a day after a court ruled that his nomination by the opposition African Democratic Congress was invalid.

“I am in this race. I am not going anywhere. We will be on the ballot,” Abubakar said of the January 16 poll. “No threat, blackmail or court manoeuvre will make me abandon you or the cause we share.”

The ADC said it would appeal the decision. It accused the ruling All Progressives Congress of involvement in the case, which the APC denied.

The ADC, one of the main opposition parties trying to oust President Bola Tinubu, has been involved in lawsuits over its leadership. Earlier this year, the federal government backed a separate lawsuit over the ADC's eligibility to contest the 2027 vote.

Abubakar accused Tinubu and his backers of trying to turn Nigeria into a “one-party state”. The APC said the opposition should fix its own “internal mess” and said it had no role in the case.

Abubakar came second in the 2023 presidential contest and is making his seventh attempt to lead Nigeria. If he cannot run, the election would be left without any major candidate from the north, a politically sensitive issue in Nigeria.