The leadership crisis within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) intensified on Monday as the faction loyal to 2023 presidential candidate Dumebi Kachikwu officially backed the de-recognition of the David Mark-led leadership.
During an Abuja press conference, the group declared full support for the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) decision to withdraw recognition from David Mark and his executive committee, following a recent Court of Appeal ruling.
The faction also disowned factional leader Nafiu Bala Gombe, asserting that he did not emerge through any credible or constitutional process. They accused former national chairman Ralph Nwosu of attempting to hand the party over to non-members and praised INEC for distancing itself from the Mark-led group.
“We hereby dissociate ourselves from David Mark, his exco, and all their actions,” stated Temitope Kingsley, the Kogi State chairman. “We also distance ourselves from the Nafiu Bala Gombe group and their purported decisions.”
The group revealed that a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, held on Tuesday at Dumebi Kachikwu’s Abuja office, produced these resolutions. Publicity Secretary Obinna Don Norman, reading the communique, argued that David Mark and his team never met the party’s constitutional requirement of two years’ membership.
Norman further clarified that the NEC did not ratify the congresses previously slated for today, rendering them unrecognized. He defended the formation of the new NEC members as a necessary move to preserve the party’s structure and maintain a legal link with INEC ahead of future elections.
“We are on a rescue mission to save the ADC from exclusion in the next general election,” Norman said. “Once the legal tussle clears, the NEC will stand down for a new executive.”
Responding to allegations of sponsorship by the All Progressives Congress (APC), Norman denied any ties to the ruling party or President Bola Tinubu. “I haven’t seen the President since his time as Governor of Lagos when I was a reporter,” he responded. “We are simply preventing non-members from hijacking the ADC for their own interests.”
To solidify their stance, the faction presented an interim leadership team representing 25 state chapters:
- Interim National Chairman: Ogga Temitope Kingsley (Kogi)
- Secretary: Odion Kennedy (Edo)
- Deputy Chairman: Muhammad Khala Jidda (Borno)
- Assistant Secretary: Kabiru Hussaini (Jigawa)
- National Organising Secretary: Dr. Charles Idowu Omidji (Osun)
- Deputy Organising Secretary: Johnny Tovi Derek (Bayelsa)
- Treasurer: Stella Chukwuma (Enugu)
- Publicity Secretary: Obinna Don Norman (Abia)
