Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has come under fresh scrutiny following allegations that he attempted to influence the outcome of the African Democratic Congress presidential primary in Adamawa State, a development that has intensified the ongoing ADC primary row within the party.
The allegations were made by Dr. Nicholas Msheliza, chairman of the ADC electoral committee in Adamawa State and Returning Officer for the presidential primary, who claimed that Lawal sought to have official results altered after they had already been collated and documented.
According to Msheliza, the controversy began after results from Hong Local Government Area showed a decisive victory for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over businessman Mohammed Hayatu-Deen and former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi.
Providing a breakdown of the figures, Msheliza said Atiku secured 11,991 votes in Hong LGA, while Hayatu-Deen polled 2,493 votes and Amaechi received 377 votes. He alleged that after the figures became known, Lawal contacted him directly and demanded that the results be reversed in favour of Hayatu-Deen.
“When Babachir Lawal got wind of the results, he called and requested that I reverse the results to favour his candidate. I refused to carry out his criminal directive,” Msheliza stated.
The allegation has become a central issue in the growing ADC primary row, with questions emerging over the handling of the primary election and the authenticity of competing results.
Msheliza further alleged that after he rejected the request, Lawal moved to dissolve the existing local electoral committee and establish what he described as a parallel structure to conduct another exercise. According to him, the new team operated in several local government areas, including Hong, Madagali, Michika and Mubi North.
The Returning Officer claimed the exercise was carried out without consultation with members of the original committee and without the proper electoral materials used during the official process. He alleged that the parallel exercise subsequently generated what he described as “concocted results” that conflicted with the figures already documented by the original committee.
“This was done without consultation and without proper electoral materials. The original results had already been documented before the parallel team arrived,” he said. The ADC primary row has also raised concerns about the existence of multiple result sheets and competing claims regarding the outcome of the Adamawa presidential primary.
Msheliza insisted that the figures announced by the original committee remain the authentic records of the election and challenged Lawal to publicly release any alternative result sheets generated by the parallel team. He said such a comparison would allow party members and the public to determine which figures accurately reflected the votes cast during the primary.
The electoral committee chairman also declared that he was prepared to present documentary evidence supporting his claims. According to him, records in his possession include official result sheets and documents compiled before the alleged parallel exercise took place.
He maintained that the evidence would demonstrate that the original committee had completed its work and recorded the results before any attempt was made to alter the outcome. As the ADC primary row continues to unfold, the allegations have placed renewed attention on the conduct of the party’s presidential nomination process in Adamawa and may trigger further demands for transparency from party stakeholders.
