By Ghazali Ibrahim
Activist Aisha Yesufu has accused the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) of violating the Electoral Act during the selection of its Federal Capital Territory (FCT) senatorial candidate, saying she could not compromise her values in what she described as an unjust process.
Yesufu made the allegation in a statement on Friday night, hours after announcing that the party would not conduct primaries for the FCT Senate seat, effectively ending her bid for the ticket.
The activist, who declared her intention to contest the race on May 6 after leaving the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the NDC, said her decision was motivated by the leadership experience she gained in her former party.
Her announcement came amid speculation that the party had already decided to award the FCT Senate ticket to Amanda Pam, a longstanding party member.
Speaking to supporters earlier on Friday, Yesufu urged calm and focus on the broader political objectives ahead of the 2027 general elections. She later alleged that the candidate selection process was marred by injustice and violations of electoral guidelines.
“I understood what I was getting into… I would not compromise my values. I would stand for what is right. I did not leave advocacy to go into politics. I took advocacy into politics,” she said.
Yesufu claimed that her grassroots campaign and the strength of her “SAY-Nation” movement prompted the party to conduct the process behind closed doors, describing what was presented as a primary as “a predetermined outcome dressed in procedural formalities.”
She also accused the party of repeatedly delaying the primary, changing venues at the last minute, and ignoring party guidelines.
“The delegate-based process was introduced to be conducted at a central location instead of direct primaries at Local Government headquarters,” Yesufu said. “When the moment came, the contest was not decided by delegates in the open; it was affirmed in a closed room, away from the people whose voices it was supposed to reflect.”
Yesufu explained that she chose not to challenge the outcome immediately, preferring to learn from the experience rather than engage in what she described as a “grievance process designed to wear people down.”
“I now understand the architecture of the system in ways no textbook, no punditry, no amount of outside observation could ever teach. That knowledge is worth more than any petition I could have filed,” she added.
