The African Democratic Congress delays its final presidential primary results to allow Muslim faithful to celebrate Eid-el-Kabir.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has officially postponed the nationwide collation and final announcement of its presidential primary election results.
Making the announcement late Tuesday night at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja, the Chairman of the ADC Presidential Primary Election Committee, Chief Ikechi Emenike, explained that the decision was taken out of profound respect for the Muslim Ummah, allowing party faithful, stakeholders, and delegates to peacefully observe the holy Eid-el-Kabir festival.
Emenike revealed that while the initial timeline aimed for a continuous computation of ballots, logistical challenges also played a significant role in the halt.
Several state returning officers tasked with transporting physical result sheets from far-flung geopolitical zones encountered abrupt domestic flight disruptions and delays over the weekend, making it impossible to arrive at the central tallying hub in Abuja on schedule.
Before the sudden suspension of proceedings, the electoral committee had successfully collated and verified results from 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The regions whose votes have already been officially entered into the national log include Borno, Kebbi, Anambra, Abia, Ekiti, Ondo, Gombe, Oyo, Imo, Yobe, Nasarawa, Enugu, Benue, Osun, Adamawa, and Kogi. Other calculated areas comprise Kano, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto, Taraba, Zamfara, and the FCT.
“We are postponing the collation to allow our brothers and sisters celebrating Sallah to participate in the religious activity and to enable returning officers who had flight challenges to arrive in Abuja later today. The processing of outstanding sheets for the remaining 12 states will commence at 8:00 PM today,” Chief Ikechi Emenike stated.
The temporary break comes at a highly critical moment for the opposition party, as early patterns from the certified states show former Vice President Atiku Abubakar maintaining a commanding lead in key northern and southern hubs.
The unfolding situation has already triggered internal friction within the party, following the outright rejection of early tallies by fellow contender and former Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, alongside the formal withdrawal of banking mogul, Malam Mohamed Hayatudeen, over claims of grassroots irregularities.
The national leadership maintains that resuming the collation under tight security will bring full transparency, giving all remaining factions a fair chance to witness the final outcome.
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