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By John Ogunsemore
A faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) loyal to Nafiu Bala said Senator David Mark’s claim of being National Chairman of the party is void as he is not a bona fide member.
Bala’s Special Assistant on Public Affairs, Aminu Alhassan said in a Friday statement that “only bonafide members of the party can aspire to leadership positions”.
In July, a cross-section of opposition figures adopted the ADC as its political platform to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027.
Key figures in the coalition include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; Mark; former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola; 2023 presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, former Kaduna governor, Nasir El-Rufai; former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, former National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus, among others.
Ralph Nwosu, ADC founder and former National Chairman announced on July 2 that the NWC under his leadership had resigned and endorsed the Mark-led interim leadership of the party.
The coalition also wrote to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise the new ADC National Working Committee led by Mark (National Chairman) and Aregbesola (National Secretary).
However, Alhassan said the constitution of the interim leadership under Mark violated the party’s constitution.
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According to him, only dialogue conducted within the framework of the party’s constitution could have produced a new NWC for the party.
The statement reads, “First and foremost, it is essential to clarify that the resignation of Chief Ralph Nwosu did not create a free-for-all scenario within the ADC.
“Instead, it has opened a necessary dialogue regarding the future of our leadership, a dialogue that must be conducted within the framework established by our party’s constitution.
“The ADC’s constitution is unequivocal in stipulating that any individual seeking to assume a leadership role must first be a bonafide member of the party.
“This fundamental requirement cannot be overlooked or circumvented by any means.
“We would like to emphasise that there is no provision in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) regulations, the constitution, or the ADC’s constitution that permits an individual to assume leadership without fulfilling the requisite criteria of membership and democratic process.”
