The African Democratic Congress has finished its national convention in Abuja. Most of the delegates voted to change the party’s constitution.
Emeka Ihedioha, the Chairman of the ADC Electoral Sub-Committee and former Governor of Imo State, announced the results after the voting was over.
He added that 1,576 delegates were approved and 11 ballots were thrown out. Channels TV said that 1,471 delegates, or 94 percent, voted “yes” to change the constitution.
“Honorable delegates, this result means that the constitution of the African Democratic Congress has been properly changed by this convention that took place at the Rainbow Event Centre in Abuja,” he stated.
Before the vote, Olumide Apata, the Chairman of the Legal and Convention Processes Committee, led the approval of resolutions on important party problems at the 97th, 98th, and 99th NEC sessions.
Chinedu Idigo, the National Organizing Secretary, talked about the resolutions that were passed. These included waiving membership requirements, putting a stop to zoning rules for executive positions, and putting a stop to the rule that said that a vacant office had to be filled by someone from the same zone as the person who left it.
The ADC’s 99th NEC meeting ended the Chief Ralph Nwosu-led National Working Committee (NWC) right away. The David Mark-led NWC then took over conducting the party’s business. The convention approved the resolution.
David Mark, the National Chairman, noted in his closing remarks that he had been to several national conventions as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but none of them were as well-organized as yesterday’s ADC conference.
He called the convention a “excellent performance” and said it was the start of the party’s trip to Aso Rock in 2027.
“Today is the start of our journey to the Villa, and all of you are a part of this history.” Mark said, “I’ll remind you again next year when we move to the Villa.”
Abejide and Nafiu Bala were kicked out.
At the convention, the party said that Nafiu Bala, the factional chairman, and Leke Abejide, the member of the House of Representatives from Yagba Federal Constituency of Kogi State, would be kicked out.
It also verified that other members, including as factional leader Kingsley Temitope, Noman Obinna, Kennedy Odion, Stella Chukwuma, and four others, had been kicked out.
The party maintained that the people who were kicked out were doing things that were against the party and trying to cause confusion and instability within its ranks.
Senator Binos Yaroe from the Adamawa South Senatorial District made the motion to kick them out, and Hon. Abdussamad Dasuki, who represents the Kebbi/Tambuwal Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, seconded it.
Atiku Says INEC is Hurting Democracy
Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president and leader of the ADC, said earlier at the convention that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is being exploited to weaken democracy in Nigeria.
He criticized the head of the election authority, Professor Joash Amupitan, for what he said were “illegalities.”
“I won’t finish these comments without accusing the chairman of INEC and INEC itself because it’s clear, it’s obvious, the evidence is there that INEC is being used to destroy democracy in this country.” Now, tell the Federal Government that we battled the military to bring democracy to this country, and we will fight them again to bring democracy to this country.
“Tell the chairman that we won’t let him get away with his illegal actions. We won’t, and I hope we can count on your support and cooperation to make sure we return to true democracy and true progress in all areas of human activity,” Atiku said.
Peter Obi Says Nigeria Is “Heading to Disaster”
Peter Obi, a previous presidential candidate for the Labour Party, also spoke out against President Bola Tinubu’s government for Nigeria’s mounting debt profile, saying that the country is “heading to disaster.”
He said that the previous government’s decision to get rid of the petrol subsidy was meant to lower borrowing and put the money toward development instead. He did say, though, that the current government has kept borrowing more money.
“When this government took over, they took away the subsidy on oil.” The reason was to cease borrowing money to pay for it and instead use the money to improve the country. But even if that was taken away, the government is still borrowing.
“The last government left behind a debt of roughly ₦87 trillion. We are close to ₦200 trillion today. That means they have borrowed more than 130 percent more, even though they took away the subsidies. At the same time, contractors are still due money, and the 2025 budget doesn’t feature any projects that have been funded. We owe a lot of money and have borrowed more on everything. He said, “We’re headed for disaster.”
Amaechi Talks About Safety Issues
Rotimi Amaechi, a former governor of Rivers State and Minister of Transportation, said that he was worried about escalating insecurity. He said that the situation in some parts of the country was like a civil war.
“I saw folks running away from their neighborhood in Nasarawa yesterday like it was a civil war. He said, “The picture of the civil war came back to me.”
Amaechi stressed the importance of strong leadership in fighting crime when he thought back on his time in office.
“When I was governor of Rivers State, you couldn’t do anything wrong and I would sleep.” Until you were arrested, I wouldn’t sleep. “All of us would stay awake until they caught the person,” he said.
Aregbesola Criticizes the “Renewed Hope” Plan
Rauf Aregbesola, a former Minister of Interior and ADC National Secretary, called President Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” plan a hoax and told him to step down because of rising crime and economic hardship.
“Honorable delegates and our opponents, four years ago, this government offered Nigerians a fresh hope for a better future. It still retains potential and gives people optimism three years into its four-year mandate. When will this hope really come true? It’s easy to see why. It’s a scam. What is the answer? A swindle! If this government is allowed to stay in power, they will keep talking about fresh hope forever. He remarked, “It is our duty to stop scammers from staying in power.”
Even though INEC said it wouldn’t watch the ADC’s congresses and national convention because of a court ruling, the party still held congresses in states and a national convention.
Party loyalists and stalwarts came to the event, where they eventually voted to change the party’s constitution.
About the Author
