Twenty-five state chairmen of the All Democratic Congress (ADC) have seized control of the party and unveiled an interim committee to manage its affairs.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the Abuja State Chairman of the All Democratic Congress (ADC), Don Norman Obinna and 24 of his counterparts disowned David Mark and Nafiu Bala factions of the party.
They declared that the ADC has no factions and endorsed the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) suspension of the David Mark-led National Working Committee (NWC).
Obinna emphasized that the party dissociates entirely from both the suspended David Mark-led NWC and factional chairman Nafiu Bala Gombe.
“This is in reaction to INEC’s delisting of the David Mark-led ADC. Ignorance is not only a disease but also a crime. We have watched with amusement how they fool Nigerians with no real understanding of issues concerning our party,” Obinna said.
According to him, the actions of the former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu had triggered the party’s current troubles, adding, “the tenure of our former chairman, Ralph Nwosu, ended in August 2022. Nwosu’s refusal to step down led to a series of litigations, culminating in Justice Binta Nyako ruling in 2022 that his tenure had expired and any action taken by him or his NWC thereafter was null and void.”
One of Nwosu’s illegal maneuvers was convening a convention in Zaria, Kaduna State, in October 2022, during which he reappointed himself and Nafiu Bala Gombe to the NWC—an act rejected by INEC, he said.
“This matter even reached the Supreme Court when the group now known as the David Mark-led coalition engaged with Nwosu,” he added.
He accused the suspended NWC of sidelining state executives and violating the party’s constitution, which mandates quarterly NEC meetings.
“Since the emergence of David Mark’s NWC, we’ve never held a 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,” Obinna explained.
He further revealed attempts by the Mark-led NWC to replace state chairmen whose tenure had not expired, calling it an illegal transfer of party authority to outsiders.
“David Mark-led leadership put in place some measures to replace state chairmen of the party simply because they didn’t look as chairman who would represent the party. We have quietly watched the illegality of their actions prior to INEC’s recent position,” he said.
Sequel to an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, the state chairmen resolved to dissociate the ADC from David Mark and the so-called coalition. They also reaffirmed that Nafiu Bala Gombe has never held any official position within the party.
“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,” Obinna said.
The interim national executive committee named to run the party and organize a national convention comprises: Chairman: Ogga Temitope Kingsley (Kogi), Secretary: Odion Kennedy (Edo), Deputy Chairman: Muhamma Khala Jidda (Borno), Assistant Secretary: Kabiru Hussaini (Jigawa), National Organising Secretary: Dr. Charles Idowu Omidiji (Osun), Deputy Organising Secretary: Johnny Tovi Derek (Bayelsa), Treasurer: Stella Chukwu (Enugu) and Publicity Secretary: Don Norman Obinna (Abuja).
Obinna emphasized that the party has never had factions, asserting that the body of state chairmen remains the only legitimate authority.
“ADC has no faction. The people seated here today were elected, and they are state chairmen. The state chairmen body is the only recognised body, and their tenure is still running. This is not a faction. INEC didn’t say anything about the NEC. In a vacuum, the NEC of the party takes over pending a new convention,” he said.
On the qualifications of the David Mark-led coalition, Kogi State chairman Temitope Kingsley Ogga added: “There’s a clause in the constitution that says if you’ve not been a member for up to two years, you can’t contest for elective positions. These people are not up to two years, and we warned them at that time. Only God knows what happened between Nwosu and Nafiu Bala because they planned this thing together.”
He affirmed the party’s resolve to protect its legacy: “Even when we were not a big party, we won elections, and we can’t allow the efforts of the party to go down the drain.”
