Dickson warns Obi, Kwankwaso supporters against running down NDC

Senator Seriake Dickson, the National Leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has cautioned supporters of the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, against making disparaging remarks about the party or undermining its leadership.

Speaking during an appearance on Arise TV’s Prime Time programme, Dickson dismissed claims of internal crisis within the party, insisting that the NDC remains united and stable.

According to him, the party has made significant sacrifices to provide a political platform for its candidates, stressing that such gestures should not be misrepresented or taken for granted.

“The NDC leadership is intact and there is no crisis whatsoever,” Dickson said. “Peter Obi is a cherished member of our party. On our own, we have made him sole presidential candidate, and that counts for something. None of them was part of the formation when we were registering this party. They didn’t pay one naira, no presidential candidate paid ‘shishi’. You have to grant NDC some credit.”

He further argued that the party is not indebted to any of its candidates, but rather the candidates benefit from the structure and platform already established by the party leadership.

“Stop making it look like anyone is doing NDC a favour. No one is. Rather the NDC and my colleagues are doing them a favour by granting them our platform,” he said, warning against what he described as disrespect towards party leadership.

Dickson also rejected allegations that the party sells nomination tickets to the highest bidders, explaining that financial contributions made by aspirants are strictly for campaign and party support purposes.

“The NDC doesn’t sell nomination ticket to people. What we have done, because we are a self-funding party, is to have aspirants make contributions and donations to the party account. It applies to all categories of aspirants, including presidential aspirants,” he said.

He added that such donations are channelled into campaign accounts rather than personal accounts, stressing that no direct payment was made for nominations.

On the issue of internal party processes and the role of the National Assembly, Dickson criticised calls for mandatory direct primaries, arguing that political parties should be allowed to determine their own methods of selecting candidates.

He noted that the implementation of direct primaries has been distorted in practice, with individuals sometimes declaring themselves winners based on informal or unverified processes.

“That is why I talk about institutional capacity on the part of the regulator (INEC) and on the part of the political party,” he said.

The remarks come amid ongoing debates within Nigeria’s opposition coalition over internal cohesion and candidate selection processes ahead of the 2027 general elections.

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