- ADC Denies Deal On Bala Appointment, Blames APC For Crisis
- Party accused APC-led government of fueling internal crisis and instability.
- Leadership crisis persists as ADC moves ahead with congresses and convention.
The African Democratic Congress has denied claims that it reached an agreement to appoint Nafiu Bala Gombe as the party’s National Vice Chairman for the North-East, insisting that no such arrangement exists.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, made the clarification in an interview, describing the claim as false and misleading.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that Abdullahi also alleged that the crisis within the party is being influenced by the All Progressives Congress led Federal Government.
The controversy followed comments by former senator Ishaku Abbo, who blamed the leadership crisis on betrayal, internal disagreements, and external interference. In a Facebook post, Abbo claimed the dispute began after Nafiu Bala Gombe and other National Working Committee members resigned alongside Ralph Nwosu to pave the way for a new leadership under David Mark.
Abbo stated that Bala attended the meeting at the Yar’Adua Centre where David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola emerged as national chairman and secretary.
“If you check the picture below, the man sitting before me is Nafiu Bala. He was at the Yar’Adua Centre, clapping and cheering as David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola took over as national chairman and secretary, respectively,” Abbo said.
He further alleged that there was an agreement to allocate positions across geopolitical zones, claiming that the leadership failed to honour a promise to appoint Bala, instead naming Babachir David Lawal.
Reacting, Abdullahi said the national leadership was unaware of any such agreement.
“All this talk about the ADC not keeping an agreement is not true. There is no such agreement. If there were any local discussions about sharing positions in the North-East, we are not aware of them,” he said.
He warned against using the claim to undermine the party, alleging that Bala was being sponsored to destabilise the ADC.
“We believe he is being sponsored by the government to destabilise our party. This is why Bayo Onanuga and others are celebrating him,” Abdullahi added.
Despite the crisis, Abdullahi said the party would proceed with congresses and its national convention as scheduled, stressing that “INEC is not a court.”
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission recently removed some ADC officials, including David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola, from its records following a court order to maintain the status quo.
The party has been in a leadership crisis since 2025 after the emergence of a new National Working Committee led by David Mark, with disputes linked to the tenure of former chairman Ralph Nwosu.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, Lawal Tukur Batagarawa confirmed that all party activities, including the national convention scheduled for April 14, would proceed.
“The national headquarters, the national leadership of the party, in a meeting, decided that we will continue with our political activities,” Batagarawa said.
“Therefore, congresses at the polling booth level, at the ward level, at the local government level, at the state level, and the national convention slated for the 14th of April will go ahead.”
