APC to ADC: Tackle your party’s crisis

The All Progressives Congress has told the African Democratic Congress to resolve its leadership crisis instead of blaming the ruling party for its court setbacks.

The APC, in a statement on Friday by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, dismissed the allegations of its involvement in the ADC crisis.

This came on the heels of a Thursday Federal High Court ruling in Abuja which nullified the David Mark-led National Working Committee of the ADC.

Delivering the judgment, Justice Peter Lifu held that the emergence of the Mark-led leadership following the resignation of former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, contravened the party’s constitution, the Electoral Act, and the 1999 Constitution.

The court also invalidated decisions and actions taken by the faction, including its planned 2027 presidential primary, which produced former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as its candidate. It further directed the Independent National Electoral Commission not to recognise the affected decisions.

Following the judgment, the ADC and some opposition parties accused the ruling APC of being responsible for the party’s leadership crisis.

However, the APC said the dispute arose from a legal challenge instituted by aggrieved members of the ADC and had nothing to do with the ruling party.

Morka accused the ADC of adopting contradictory positions on the judiciary, praising court decisions in its favour while alleging collusion whenever rulings went against it.

“Every time a court decides against the Senator David Mark-led faction of the ADC, they accuse the APC of collusion and deprecate the judiciary. Every time a court decides in their favour, they hail the rule of law and extol the judiciary. That is the habitual folly of a party scuttled by its own pirate leaders,” Morka stated.

“The ADC touts its desire to win power and govern democratic Nigeria without any iota of regard for the authority and independence of the judiciary, an indispensable pillar of any democracy. In their warped reckoning, only courts and judges that side with them are worthy, while those that rule differently are a menace to society. That is senselessness in the extreme.

“The court judgment that has sent the ADC into a tailspin had to do with a notorious case initiated by ADC leaders against pirate leaders of the ADC. To be clear, the APC is neither a party nor an interlocutor in the matter. Nothing about the case has anything to do with the APC, and the APC has absolutely no role in the party’s judicial quagmire.”

The ruling party alleged that the emergence of the Mark-led leadership violated the ADC constitution, internal democracy, and the rule of law, adding that the court had affirmed these concerns.

It accused the ADC faction of blaming the judiciary and the APC for the judgment instead of taking responsibility for its internal crisis.

“If the ADC is dissatisfied with that decision, it should exercise its constitutional right of appeal rather than engage in partisan mudslinging against our great party and issue threats to incite anarchy against the same Nigerians they claim they desire to govern.

“The ADC is a decrepit party and continues to prove itself as grossly unfit to be taken seriously by Nigerians, who are unperturbed by its irresponsible and dangerous rhetoric. A party that cannot fix itself cannot possibly fix Africa’s most important country.

“Our great party and the President Tinubu administration remain committed to preserving Nigeria’s democracy, upholding the rule of law, and delivering good governance to all Nigerians, and are unfazed by the wolf cries of a drowning opposition,” the statement added.