*Alleges APC Conspiracy
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Dumebi Kachikwu, the 2023 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, has declared that recent developments within the party have made political ambitions through its platform a “nonstarter,” accusing former chairman Ralph Nwosu of selling the party to politicians seeking to prosecute a grudge match against President Bola Tinubu.
Kachikwu spoke in a statement on Thursday following the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission to stop recognising the caretaker committee led by David Mark and the Nafiu Bala Gombe faction.
The commission had said it would not recognise any faction of the party until the ongoing court cases over the leadership dispute are resolved.
Reacting to the development, Kachikwu said he had been inundated with calls and messages seeking his reaction to the electoral commission’s position.
“How did we get here? Did hundreds of our so-called political giants just commit political suicide? How did they get sucked into this quicksand? Let me tell you how,” Kachikwu stated.
The former presidential candidate alleged that the crisis began after the expiration of the tenure of Ralph Nwosu as chairman of the ADC.
“Ralph Nwosu, whose tenure as chairman of the African Democratic Congress lapsed on the 21st of August 2022, sold the ADC to men who had destroyed their parties and were seeking for another party with which to prosecute their grudge match against President Tinubu and the APC,” the statement read.
Kachikwu described those who took over the party as “mostly ex-political office holders who have held sway over the affairs of Nigeria for the last forty years or more.”
He alleged that the group had attempted to register the ADA party, then jumped to the SDP before they “gate crashed the ADC in the middle of the night.”
Kachikwu criticised politicians he accused of moving across parties without ideological commitment.
“How do you explain this? Jumping from political party to political party, no ideology, no belief system, standing for nothing and believing only in the notion that power is their birthright,” he said.
The former presidential candidate said he had previously warned that the party was heading into a crisis.
“I had long warned that the ADC was a bad market and that anyone who attempted to come into the party through the back door would be shown the way out through the windows,” he said.
“What we are seeing today is just the beginning.”
Kachikwu said several court cases related to the party’s leadership crisis may eventually reach the Supreme Court.
“There are several court cases that will end at the Supreme Court, and the only way they can win is if the Supreme Court can change Monday to Saturday and Saturday to Tuesday,” he said.
“But again, this is Nigeria where anything and everything is possible.”
He added that the actions of some political actors had effectively ended the possibility of contesting elections through the party.
“So, all those of you who joined these geriatrics because you seek to contest for positions in the 2027 general elections, I regret to inform you that the actions of these men have rendered any political aspiration through the ADC a nonstarter,” he said.
Kachikwu also criticised plans to increase the cost of nomination forms for party positions.
“These men who attempted to hijack our party had already concluded plans to conduct congresses where forms that were hitherto sold for ₦50,000 would now be sold for ₦500,000, all in a bid to disenfranchise the poor party faithful who originally held those positions,” he said.
“Are they saying that ordinary Nigerians who they consider poor are not good enough to hold party positions in a party where these big men are? They have long told us that they seek political office to better the lot of the masses, yet they can’t be in a party where the masses hold sway.”
Kachikwu alleged a political arrangement between some actors and the ruling All Progressives Congress.
“I have now accepted that these old men are truly masters of the political game. For them to come into the ADC knowing that there is no pathway here for them means that there is a conspiracy between these men and the APC to make a fool of us all. This is the only plausible explanation,” he said.
Kachikwu dismissed claims that the development signals the emergence of a one-party state in Nigeria, noting that several other political parties remain active in the country.
“There are many who would say that this means that we are now a one-party state and my immediate response is that we have the PDP, Labour Party, NNPP, AA, AAC, SDP, ADP, APGA, Accord and many other parties out there. So why the ADC? Why the African Democratic Congress?” he asked.
Kachikwu concluded with a statement of faith.
“My consolation in all these is that you can fool man, but you can’t fool God. God win,” he said.
Kachikwu’s blistering statement exposes the depth of division within the ADC and the frustration of original party members who feel their platform has been hijacked by political elites.
His accusation that the party was “sold” by former chairman Ralph Nwosu to politicians seeking to fight Tinubu aligns with the narrative that the ADC became attractive to opposition figures precisely because of its registered status and national spread — not because of any ideological alignment.
The allegation of a conspiracy between the new ADC entrants and the APC is a serious charge that suggests Kachikwu believes the entire exercise was designed to fail, thereby eliminating a potential opposition platform.
For the politicians who joined the ADC hoping to use it as a vehicle for the 2027 elections — including figures like David Mark, Rauf Aregbesola, and potentially Peter Obi’s supporters — Kachikwu’s assessment is damning.
With INEC refusing to recognise any faction and multiple court cases pending, the ADC’s ability to field candidates in 2027 is now in serious doubt.
The crisis also validates concerns raised by observers like Chidi Odinkalu, who has warned that opposition parties are being systematically weakened ahead of the elections.
Whether through design or dysfunction, the ADC’s implosion represents a significant loss for Nigeria’s opposition landscape.
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