The Concerned State Chairmen of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) an umbrella body of state chairmen of the party, has rejected the new national leadership of the party led by a former Senate President, David Mark.
In a statement titled ‘Rejecting the Political Junta by Defending ADC and Nigeria’s Democracy Against Subversion’, signed by the Chairman, Amb. Elias Adokwu and the Publicity Secretary, Godwin Alaku, the chairmen described the recent takeover of the party by the opposition coalition as an “orchestrated political coup”.
Recall that Mark was named the Interim National Chairman of the ADC after the opposition coalition adopted the party as its platform. A former governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola was named Interim National Secretary.
The development is aimed at positioning the ADC to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, in the 2027 election.
The opposition coalition wants to deny President Bola Tinubu a second term in office.
But the ADC state chairmen have condemned what they described as the hijack of the party by the coalition, which includes former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who has already resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to join the ADC.
In the statement released on Tuesday, the chairmen said the emergence of Mark and others as the leaders of the ADC is a “blatant and reckless subversion” of the party’s constitution and Nigeria’s democratic norms.
They accused the coalition of attempting an unconstitutional hijack of the ADC through manipulation and backdoor dealings.
“We unequivocally condemn in the strongest terms this desperate power grab, which represents not only an aberration of democratic norms but also a grave assault on our collective political values as a nation,” the statement said.
The chairmen further noted that the move is not a realignment of political ideology – as stated by the coalition – but a “civilian junta” seeking control outside legal and democratic processes.
Rejecting the Mark-led leadership, they made reference to a warning – “If peaceful change is not possible, violent change is inevitable” – reportedly issued by one of the coalition’s leaders during the 2011 election, as evidence of the resurfacing of a dangerous mindset in the polity.
“It is only by the grace of God that our democracy survived then, and we must not allow such reckless adventurism to thrive now,” the statement warned.
According to the ADC state chairmen, the takeover is an “insult to all those who believe in and have labored for democratic governance in Nigeria”.
They said the coalition is planning to fracture the democratic process using “selfish ambition and extra-party inducements”.
They equally emphasized the ADC’s commitment to “democratic principles, the rule of law, ideological clarity, and peaceful political engagement”, rejecting any notion that the party is a platform for “political mercenaries or ideological impostors”.
The chairmen advised the coalition to “create their own party or look elsewhere”, declaring, “The ADC is not for sale, not for hijack, and certainly not a dumping ground for discredited power brokers.”
The statement challenged leaders of the coalition to disclose their contributions to Nigeria’s democracy, questioning their “electoral value or ideological clarity”.
The Concerned State Chairmen called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to resist recognising any illegal change of leadership in the party.
They also urged Nigerians and members of the civil society to monitor and resist this “creeping authoritarianism” and demand that law enforcement agencies investigate unlawful attempts to disrupt political order.
“We, the legitimate custodians of the ADC structure across all states of the federation, reject this illegitimate junta.
“We consider it our patriotic duty to defend the soul of the ADC and protect the sanctity of democratic structures in Nigeria,” the statement added.
The chairmen in the same vein dismissed what they described as baseless allegations by former ADC National Chairman Ralph Nwosu.
According to them, Nwosu’s claims are a “desperate attempt to salvage his own political reputation.”
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