A fresh leadership crisis has erupted in the All Democratic Congress (ADC) as a bloc of state chairmen announced a takeover of the party’s structure.
The state chairmen unveiled an interim national leadership and endorsed the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) recent action against a rival faction.
At a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, Don Obinna, alongside 24 state chairmen and representatives from across the country, declared that they had assumed control of the party following what they described as a leadership vacuum created by INEC’s suspension of the David Mark-led National Working Committee (NWC).
The group also disowned both the David Mark-led leadership and the faction linked to Nafiu Bala Gombe, insisting that the ADC has no factions and remains a single entity under the authority of its state chairmen.
The state chairmen claimed that Mr Bala never held a recognised position within the party, insisting his emergence was part of unconstitutional arrangements.
“We dissociate the ADC from Nafiu Gombe and firmly and unequivocally state that he has never held the position of deputy chairman of the ADC,” Mr Obinna said.
He added that the decision followed what he described as persistent constitutional violations, including the failure to convene mandatory National Executive Committee (NEC) meetings and attempts to sideline elected state executives.
“Since the emergence of David Mark’s NWC, we’ve never held an NEC meeting. They contravened the party’s constitution. NEC doesn’t even know if a congress is supposed to have been held. There’s a case in court on that,” Mr Obinna explained.
The state chairmen subsequently announced the constitution of an interim National Executive Committee to manage the party’s affairs and organise a national convention.
The committee is led by Temitope Ogga (Kogi) as chairman and Odion Kennedy (Edo) as secretary. Other members include Muhammad Jidda (Borno), deputy chairman; Kabiru Hussaini (Jigawa), assistant secretary; Charles Omidiji (Osun), national organising secretary; Johnny Derek (Bayelsa), deputy organising secretary; Stella Chukwu (Enugu), treasurer; and Mr Obinna, publicity secretary.
The group also threw its weight behind INEC’s position on the disputed leadership, describing the commission’s action as a necessary step to restore order within the party.
Speaking further, Mr Ogga questioned the eligibility of members of the David Mark-led coalition, citing provisions of the party’s constitution that require at least two years of membership before contesting for elective positions.
Background to the crisis
The latest move by the bloc of state chairmen comes amid a sharp escalation in tensions between the ADC and INEC over the party’s leadership crisis.
The dispute worsened last Thursday when the ADC, at a world press conference, demanded the immediate resignation of INEC chairman, Joash Amupitan, accusing the electoral body of undermining democracy and interfering in the internal affairs of political parties.