Leadership Dispute: Opposition Coalition’s Fresh Challenge
Leadership Dispute: Opposition Coalition’s Fresh Challenge
One of the fears raised by some opposition leaders who had insisted on the formation of an entirely new party for the coalition against the All-Progressive Congress (APC) in the coming 2027 poll was that finding base in an already existing platform would be like fishing in troubled waters, especially because older members of the party would resist the dominance of the new entrants no matter their political weight. Recent events have proven that prediction right. First, it was Nasir el-Rufai who was unceremoniously booted out of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) where he thought he had been accommodated and then came the turn of Atiku Abubakar’s men who had recently joined the African Democratic Party (ADC) as the 2027 Coalition platform and were given control of the party by erstwhile National Chairman, Chief Ralphs Okey Nwosu. Nafi’u Bala, a former governorship candidate of the ADC in Gombe, has now declared himself the national chairman of the party, describing the takeover by the David Mark leadership as unlawful.
CONTROVERSIAL TRANSITION
Recall that on July 2, Ralph Nwosu, the party’s founder and former national chairman, announced the resignation of the national working committee (NWC) and endorsed the interim leadership headed by Mark. But a faction within the party led by Dumebi Kachikwu, the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election, had opposed the entry and takeover of the party by the coalition leaders.
In the recent case, Bala – who convened a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday – accused the David Mark-led leadership of unlawfully taking over the party and breaching its constitution.
Bala said Bonafide party members would challenge the alleged takeover of the party in court.
“We wish to draw the attention of all members of our great party and Nigerians at large, to the ongoing acts of political hooliganism being perpetrated by some individuals who were hitherto entrusted with the leadership of the party,” he said.
Bala continued: “We are all living witnesses to the show of shame and acts of lawlessness being displayed by these unscrupulous leaders, who, without any qualm or sense of moral restraint, plunged our party into a needless crisis and leadership uncertainty.
“The idea of mortgaging the future of our great party, by abdicating the constitutional duties and responsibilities of all elected officers of the party, to some powerful outsiders who never belong to the party, is condemnable.
“Recently, the nation woke up only to be greeted by a shoddily rehearsed political melodrama, in which elected roles were switched with certain groups of political strangers in order to facilitate the complete takeover of the party structures and their political appurtenances.
“This total surrender and capitulation is without any known precedent in our democratic journey to constitutional order. We are therefore strongly resolved and collectively determined to challenge this affront and ensure that the party’s laid down rules and stipulated provisions are respected and strictly adhered to by all those who belong to it.
“In case these individuals choose to ignore our urgent calls to obey our constitutional guidelines and thus remain very obdurate and recalcitrant in their aberrant behaviour, we shall proceed with gusto to challenge these gross acts of impunity in the courts and bring them to justice.
“It gives us enormous pain to inundate you with these scandalous happenings in our party, but we have been left with no other option to take in defence of our inalienable constitutional rights, as evident by the prevailing situation we now find ourselves in the party.
“In the history of democracy all over the world, no party leader or any group of leaders have the power to arbitrarily transfer elected mandate or political authority to non-members who never belonged or contested for political office.”
He noted that the constitution of the ADC contains explicit provisions outlining succession procedures and processes for filling vacant positions. Then he announced that in line with the party’s constitutional guidelines, he had assumed the role of interim national chairman of the party.
He asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to “urgently” acknowledge and recognise him as the party chairman.
TRICKY FATE OF COALITION
Some of the coalition members include ex-Vice-President Atiku Abubakar; former senate president Mark; Uche Secondus, former PDP national chairman; Babangida Aliyu, former governor of Niger state; Sam Egwu, former governor of Ebonyi; Aminu Tambuwal, ex-governor of Sokoto; and Liyel Imoke, former governor of Cross River.
Others are Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna; Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the LP in 2023; Rauf Aregbesola, former minister of interior; Rotimi Amaechi, former minister of transportation; Solomon Dalung, ex-minister of sports; Odigie Oyegun, former chairman of the All-Progressives Congress (APC); Bolaji Abdullahi, a former minister of sports; among others.
In Response to reports that he had resigned his position in the party, Bala, in a statement on Friday, denied the reports of his resignation from the party which stemmed from a resignation letter purportedly issued on May 18, 2025.
In the statement which he personally signed, Bala condemned the document as entirely false and deceptive, attributing its circulation to certain mischievous elements within and outside the party.
He said: “I am writing to address a matter of utmost importance that has recently surfaced in the public domain, a fabricated letter of resignation purportedly authored by me, Nafiu Bala, dated 18 May 2025. This document, which has been circulated by certain mischievous elements within and outside our party, is entirely false and without merit.
“I wish to unequivocally state that I have not resigned from my position as the Deputy National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress. The timing and content of this fake resignation letter are not only misleading but also riddled with glaring contradictions that raise serious questions about its authenticity.
“Notably, while the letter claims I resigned on 18 May 2025, it is critical to highlight that on 2 July 2025, during a meeting to receive certain new members into the ADC at the Yar’Adua Conference Center in Abuja, my predecessor, Ralph Nwosu, publicly declared his own resignation.
“In his address to the global media, he made a specific mention of my status, stating, ‘Nafiu Bala did not resign as the Deputy National Chairman’.
“This statement invalidates any claims of my resignation and underscores the deceitful nature of the circulated letter. Furthermore, I would like to draw attention to the discrepancies between my official correspondence and the aforementioned fake resignation letter.
“All my official communications have been conducted on the official headed paper of my office, which bears the emblem and insignia of the African Democratic Congress. In stark contrast, the fraudulent resignation letter is presented on plain paper, devoid of any official markings. This blatant difference in presentation further undermines the credibility of the document and highlights the nefarious intentions behind its circulation.
“In light of these developments, I must also question the authenticity of those who are now posing as new leaders of our party. The Constitution of the African Democratic Congress clearly stipulates that any individual seeking to assume a leadership position must be a member of the party and must have maintained their financial obligations for a minimum of one year prior to their candidacy.
“This provision has not been amended, and any claims to the contrary are simply unfounded. It is essential that we uphold the integrity of our party’s Constitution and ensure that all leadership transitions adhere to the established guidelines.
“The integrity of our party’s governance structures must be preserved, and any actions taken outside of these formal processes cannot be recognized as legitimate.”
Bala called on all party members, supporters, and the broader public to remain alert in the face of misinformation and to reject efforts aimed at sowing discord within the party ranks.
He added, “Our party is built on the principles of democracy, transparency, and integrity, and it is imperative that we work together to uphold these values.
“I reaffirm my commitment to the African Democratic Congress and its vision for a united and prosperous Nigeria. Together, we will continue to advance our agenda and serve the interests of the people we represent.”
Although the present tremor may subside, there are signs that the coalition leaders are in for a rough time that will clearly be created by internal dissension and legal disputes. Given the possibility that some of these conflicts are being sponsored to throw the opposition into disarray, there are therefore grounds to suspect that the road to 2027, for the opposition, is replete with mines.
