The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has during its national convention yesterday expelled the party’s former Deputy National Chairman, Nafiu Bala Gombe, and a member of the House of Representatives, Leke Abejide. Others expelled by the party are Kenneth Ehiator (Abia State chairman of the party who identified with Dumebi Kachikwu, former presidential candidate, who is also claiming to be the leader of the party), Stella Chukwu and Elias Adiukwu.
Nafiu Bala had insisted that he is the national chairman of the party, while Abejide, a member of the House of Representatives, has been identifying with Bala and was part of those who staged a protest to the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) asking that Bala should be recognised as chairman of the ADC.
Meanwhile, the national convention was held amidst claims of attempts to stop the exercise. The party at the convention ratified the David Mark-led National Working Committee. The members include the National Secretary, Rauf Aregbesola; the Deputy National Chairman, North East, Babachir Lawal; and the National Publicity Secretary, Mal. Bolaji Abdullahi, among others.
The party said it will inform INEC about the convention and then start preparing for its primaries.
The chairman, the media sub-committee of the convention, Kola Ologbondiyan, said by holding the convention, the party has fulfilled its part towards participating in the 2027 general elections.
He said, “What we would do now is to submit the report, having notified INEC earlier."
He said it doesn’t matter whether INEC was there to monitor the convention or not since it had been duly notified.
“The court said we should write our report. The law said you should write your report and send it to INEC. It is immaterial whether INEC comes to monitor it or not. All the law said is to serve INEC a notice. Serve them the 21- day notice."
Sources within the party said after sailing through the national convention, the party had crossed its major hurdle and will now commence work on getting a presidential candidate.
“Since we now have a national chairman and other officials, it will guide us in deciding who picks the presidential ticket so we can start the campaign," the source disclosed.
Three former presidential candidates in the 2023 elections, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, who contested the presidency on the platform of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have all left their former parties and are now in the ADC.
Former governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, has also indicated interest in running for the presidential ticket of the party.
The 2026 Electoral Act stipulates that primary elections should be through either direct primaries or consensus.
“It is expected that after electing a substantive national chairman, national secretary and other officials for the party the bigger challenge now is how to prevail on the aspirants to work together towards electing one among them to fly the presidential ticket of the party,” another source added.
Analysts said deciding the flag bearer of the party remains the biggest challenge.
Leaders of the ADC explained that they had to hold the convention so as to be able to put in place the necessary machinery to participate in the 2027 general elections, insisting that it was right for them to go ahead with the event as they had already notified the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of the convention.
A Generational Challenge - Mark
In his opening remarks, the National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Senator David Mark, described the crisis in the party as having to do with generational challenge.
Mark said, “Our objective is not merely political success or a mere quest for power. We see it as a duty to ourselves and to posterity to demonstrate to all Nigerians that something good can come out of politics, and that democracy can actually deliver a better life that they seek. This is the fundamental goal of our party.
“We view this as a generational challenge. And this is why we say to all opposition leaders in the country, regardless of your political party, 'Come, let us work together to save our country. The challenges that we are confronted with goes beyond partisanship; it is a patriotic duty to rescue our country from creeping dictatorship and exploitative governance, “he said.
Mark said his acceptance to serve as national chairman was clear, with a sense of duty. “And I accepted it with an unshakable commitment to reposition the ADC as the platform through which Nigeria will be rescued and rebuilt."
Lamenting that they have been betrayed, he said, “Since we started this journey, we have faced many challenges and faced many hurdles. Our party has faced fierce and unprecedented betrayal. Let us not pretend otherwise. Recent developments involving the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have raised fundamental questions about the process that governs our democracy.
“Forces that feared what a united ADC represents came for us; through the courts, through institutions, through bureaucratic obstruction. They sought to stop this convention from happening. They removed our names from official portals. They denied us preferred venues. They deployed every instrument available to them to ensure that you – the delegates, the members, the owners of this party – would never gather," he said.
He said strong political movements are not built in moments of ease and in comfort. They are built in times like this, when a broken nation cries out for change and the people look for those who would lead with commitment and honesty.
“We will not surrender, because what is at stake is not just about the ADC or the opposition. It is the very survival of our democracy. To surrender, therefore, is to yield to tyranny and therefore become complicit in the destruction of our democracy.
He said, “The ADC cannot be wished away. The ADC cannot be litigated into silence. The ADC belongs to the Nigerian people – and the Nigerian people have spoken by showing up today.
We are going to fight to return democracy – Atiku
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said they are in the battle to win, adding that the federal government should know that they fought the military to bring democracy and “we are going to fight them (present administration) to bring democracy in this country.”
Addressing members of the party at the National Convention in Abuja, the ADC chieftain appealed to Nigerians, particularly members of the party, to make sure that they work together to change the situation in the country.
He said, “people like me, we must rise and make sure that there is change, genuine change, a serious change to rectify all these challenges that are happening in the country. I am in this game. We are going to win.
“Because of you, the young men and women, our children and our grandchildren, this country has been good to us. We don’t believe that this country is being good to the current generation, to the youth, to the women, and to the future of this country. That is why we are here today.”
He promised that Nigerians will witness “real change”. “You will see real change. Believe me, you cannot get away with corruption in the government of ADC. You cannot get away with compromising with criminals and terrorists to make life impossible in this country. No. That is not what we intend to do. Absolutely not.
“Therefore, it is a struggle for all Nigerians. But I will not end these remarks without indicting the chairman of INEC and INEC itself, because it is clear, it is obvious, the evidence is there. INEC is being used to undermine democracy in this country.
“Let the federal government know that we fought the military to bring democracy in this country, and we are going to fight them to bring democracy,” he said.
He said the INEC chairman knows that “we are not going to let him get away with his illegalities." We will not. And I hope we will have your support and cooperation to make sure we return to true democracy, to true development in all aspects of human endeavour."
We’re on a rescue mission – Aregbesola.
The National Secretary of the ADC, Rauf Aregbesola, has declared that Nigeria is on a rescue mission to salvage the country.
The former governor of Osun State also called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to resign over what he called the prevailing insecurity and economic hardship in country.
Aregbesola, a former ally of President Tinubu said, “People who deliberately split the Peoples Democratic Party, are today being falsely roped as political strategists. Since when has criminality become a strategy? The ADC does not, and we never owe its existence to any individual or group, including an electoral body masquerading as a neutral umpire with its leadership in the attire of political partisanship.
“The ADC derives its existence from the aspirations and the values of the Nigerian people, who are tired of the deceit and colossal mismanagement to which this country is being subjugated. We owe our existence to the Nigerian Constitution. We declare that freedom of association, including that to form or belong to any political party, is guaranteed and is a fundamental right.
“We are here because the ADC is on a rescue mission to reclaim the country from the strangulating grasp of the ruling party. The APC is a party which has foisted on the country an electoral law that stinks of forgery, and making false claims in electoral documents is no longer valid; in other words, the ruling party is criminalising criminality,” he said.
Aregbesola said members of the opposition cannot allow what he called "khaki-socracy in Nigeria”.
He continued that "the administration told Nigerians that if it does not solve the power problem by providing a constant power supply, they should not be voted for a second time. Today, power supply is far worse, with some parts of the country receiving an average of two hours daily and some other parts of the country also receiving an average of two hours daily. And some have been in darkness for stretches of weeks and months.
“Ordinarily, having made such a promise and fared woefully, an honest president should simply step down and not seek re-election. Rather, what we are witnessing is the most desperate attempt by a candidate in Nigeria’s electoral history to retain power at all costs, even if it means bringing down the entire democratic system.”
Aregbesola further criticised the state of education and the economy, claiming that the number of out-of-school children has risen from 18.3 million to nearly 20 million, while many Nigerians have been pushed into extreme poverty.
