Barred Nigerian presidential hopeful vows to stay in race

Nigerian presidential hopeful Atiku Abubakar vowed Friday he would stand in the country's forthcoming election, a day after a court ruled his nomination by the opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC) was invalid.

The veteran's party has said it will appeal against the decision and accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of involvement in the case, which they denied.

"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, one of the main opposition parties trying to oust President Bola Tinubu, has been mired in lawsuits around its leadership.

Earlier this year, the federal government backed a separate lawsuit over the ADC's eligibility to contest the 2027 vote in Africa's most populous country.

Abubakar accused the president and his backers of trying to turn Nigeria into a "one-party state".

In response to the turmoil, the APC said the opposition should stop their "senseless rants" and fix their own "internal mess".

"Nothing about the case has anything to do with the APC," the party said.

"And the APC has absolutely no role in the party's judicial quagmire."

If Abubakar cannot run it would leave the election without any major candidate from the north -- a potentially disruptive development in a country where regional representation is a politically sensitive issue.

Abubakar, who came second in the 2023 presidential contest, is on to his seventh attempt to lead Nigeria.