ADC Alleges FG Pressure on INEC Amid Leadership Crisis, Plans Protest
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the APC-led federal government of pressuring INEC Chairperson Joash Amupitan to interfere in the party’s internal leadership crisis. This follows INEC’s suspension of recognition for the ADC on 1 April, complying with a Court of Appeal order to maintain the status quo pending a Federal High Court ruling on a challenge to David Mark’s leadership by Nafiu Bala. The ADC, one of the largest opposition parties, rejected INEC’s decision, calling it an “onslaught” aimed at destabilising the party after former Kano Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso defected from the NNPP to ADC on 30 March. Kwankwaso, who placed fourth in the 2023 presidential election, is a high-profile figure. ADC spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi claimed the government is particularly desperate following Kwankwaso’s move and that a “notorious minister” is sponsoring a protest on Thursday, 2 April, in Abuja, where participants will demand “David Mark Must Go.” The party asserts the protest is a paid crowd intended to give oxygen to a case it describes as “suffocating in the courts.” The ADC maintains Bala, who is challenging Mark’s leadership, had resigned from the party on 18 May 2025 and was subsequently expelled, making his claim to National Chairman “fictitious.” The underlying legal dispute concerns the interpretation of the party’s constitution after former National Chair Ralph Nwosu resigned. The Federal High Court’s judgment is still pending after an interlocutory appeal by Mark’s camp was dismissed by the Court of Appeal. The ADC frames itself as the “only viable opposition party left” and vows to resist these moves “by all lawful and necessary means.” This political crisis raises questions about the integrity of internal party democracy and the potential for state institutions to be leveraged against opposition cohesion ahead of future elections.