Olusegun ARIYO
A Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out a lawsuit filed by former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi challenging former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s victory in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential primary.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik dismissed the case on Friday after Amaechi’s lawyer, Jibrin Okutepa, formally withdrew the suit.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Okutepa told the court that the parties had resolved their differences.
Atiku won the ADC presidential primary in May with 1,846,370 votes, defeating Amaechi, who secured 504,117 votes. Former FSB International Bank Managing Director Mohammed Hayatu-Deen came third with 177,120 votes.
Before the final results were announced, Amaechi rejected the outcome, alleging widespread voter disenfranchisement and electoral malpractice. He claimed the results were being “concocted.”
Amaechi later sued, arguing that the primary violated provisions of the Electoral Act 2026, the ADC constitution and the party’s guidelines for selecting candidates for the 2027 elections.
He asked the court to stop Atiku from presenting himself as the ADC presidential candidate. Also, he sought an order preventing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising Atiku as the party’s flag bearer.
However, in June, the ADC announced Amaechi as Atiku’s running mate for the 2027 presidential election.
With both politicians now on the same ticket, the court struck out the case after the suit was withdrawn.
