Crisis hits ADC as members drag David Mark-led interim leadership to court

Fresh cracks have emerged within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as three aggrieved party members have taken legal action against the recently constituted interim leadership led by former Senate President, David Mark.

The lawsuit, filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja, challenges the legitimacy of the interim executives unveiled earlier this month as part of an ambitious opposition coalition aiming to unseat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.

The ADC was officially adopted as the political platform of the coalition on June 2, bringing together a powerful lineup of opposition figures. These include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate Peter Obi, former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi, and ex-Kaduna State Governor Nasir el-Rufai.

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Ralph Nwosu, the former national chairman of the ADC, said the executives of the party under his leadership decided to resign and support the interim leadership.

The coalition appointed Mark and Rauf Aregbesola, ex-governor of Osun state, as interim national chairman and secretary, respectively.

Bolaji Abdullahi, a former minister of sports, was appointed as the party’s spokesperson.

However, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1328/2025 and filed on July 4, the plaintiffs, Adeyemi Emmanuel, Ayodeji Victor Tolu, and Haruna Ismaila, are asking the court to determine the legality of the interim leadership of the ADC.

They averred that Nwosu lacks the right to convene either a national working committee (NWC) or national executive committee (NEC) meeting or any other since his tenure as national chairman has expired.

The plaintiffs also stated that interim executives “cannot and should not act” in a leadership capacity, noting that they were appointed by an illegal meeting organised by a former national chairman.

Among several reliefs sought, the plaintiffs are asking the court to declare the appointment of Mark, Aregbesola, and Abdullahi as “unconstitutional, unlawful, null, and void”.

They also prayed the court for an order restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) “from recognising the fourth, fifth, and sixth defendants as the interim national chairman, national secretary, and national publicity secretary of the first defendant (ADC).