Where is the structure? — OK Movement questions NDC campaign council list

The NDC presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, (BBC)

The Obi-Kwankwaso (OK) Movement has questioned the grassroots structure and preparedness of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) for the 2027 general elections following the party’s unveiling of its National Campaign Council.

The Director-General of the OK Movement, John Ughulu, criticised the timing of the announcement, arguing that the party had delayed putting its campaign machinery in place and lacked the grassroots network required to prosecute a nationwide election.

Ughulu stated this on Monday in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja, a day after the NDC announced the composition of its campaign council ahead of its inauguration in the Federal Capital Territory.

He also boasted that the movement had established a stronger grassroots structure, predicting that some members of the newly announced council would eventually seek its support and mobilisation network.

“The funny part of this list is that 90 per cent of the people on it will still come knocking on the doors of the OK Movement to beg for the very structure they have failed to build themselves!” he said.

Ughulu further questioned the party’s readiness for the election, challenging its leadership to explain the delay in organising its campaign team.

“With less than three months to the general elections, they are only just announcing their Presidential Campaign Council. What exactly have they been doing all this time? Where is the structure? Where is the strategy? Where is the machinery required to prosecute a serious national election?” he asked.

The criticism comes amid an escalating disagreement between the NDC and the OK Movement over the movement’s organisational independence and its role in the campaign for the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso.

The NDC on Sunday announced its National Campaign Council, naming its National Leader, Senator Seriake Dickson, as chairman and Obi as co-chairman.

The party’s National Chairman, Senator Cleopas Moses Zuwoghe, was appointed vice-chairman, while Kwankwaso was named co-vice-chairman.

Other appointees include former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, as chairman of the National Advisory Council; former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege; former presidential candidate, Pat Utomi; and former National Secretary of the Congress for Progressive Change, Buba Galadima.

The NDC National Secretary, Ikenna Enekweizu, was named council secretary, while Ibrahim Abdulkarim was appointed Director-General.

Ughulu and the OK Movement’s state, local government and ward coordinators were not listed among the appointees.