By Lawrence Agbo
The 2023 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dumebi Kachikwu, has alleged that a faction linked to former Senate President David Mark has taken over the party’s internal structures through what he described as unconstitutional means.
Kachikwu made the claim on Thursday during an appearance on ARISE NEWS, following a court order in Abuja that halted the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising congresses conducted by the disputed leadership bloc.
The same ruling also restricted David Mark and other senior figures in the faction from interfering in the duties of duly elected state party executives.
Despite the setback, the Mark-aligned group insisted it remained in control of the party’s political direction. Through a statement issued by spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi, the faction said it had already challenged the ruling and remained confident of participating in the 2027 elections.
David Mark assuring supporters that ongoing legal processes would not derail the party, saying appeals had been filed and efforts were underway to secure a stay of execution.
“You do not have anything to be afraid of regarding all the litigations before the party.
“I want to assure you that we shall triumph in all the cases, and we shall be on the ballot for every election.
“We are more than prepared and ready for these cases, and we shall do everything within the ambits of the law to surmount every situation,” he said.
Kachikwu, however, maintained that the crisis began when the faction allegedly sidelined elected state officials and introduced interim committees that assumed control of party operations.
He argued that the ADC constitution clearly assigns congress organisation to state-level leadership, warning that bypassing that structure amounted to a breach of party rules.
“The constitution is clear on who conducts congresses. That responsibility lies with the state leadership,” he said.
He further alleged that the faction replaced existing executives with preferred individuals through these committees, a move he said triggered resistance and complaints from several states.
According to him, some state chairmen who initially aligned with the faction later withdrew their support after being excluded from decision-making processes.
“So those congresses, what David Mark did, they set up ad hoc committees and had these committees take over the functions of the state’s escrows to bring in people they wanted.
“So I’ve had people calling me from all the states, they pushed us out, they pushed us out, they took over our party structure or whatever,” Kachikwu said.
“Some of these state chairmen were working with David Mark because they believed that these people would take the party forward, before they realised that these guys said, you guys are too poor for us, you are commoners, we cannot work with you, we need people who look more like us,” he added.
