The interim National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), David Mark, has emphatically declared that the party holds no preferred aspirant for its highly anticipated 2027 presidential ticket.
Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday, Mark assured stakeholders that the eventual candidate would emerge through an “absolutely transparent” selection process.
“The ADC has no preferred or favourite presidential aspirant, but has set out to first put out a platform that would be attractive and acceptable to majority of Nigerians,” Mark stated, addressing a delegation of ADC stakeholders from Kogi State. He underscored the urgency of their mission, adding, “We are doing this because we do not want this great ship called Nigeria to sink, because if we do not rise up now, they will sink all of us.”
The former Senate President stressed the principle of equality within the party, asserting that “all ADC members are equal joiners and equal owners of the party.” He continued, “I don’t own this party more than any of our members and I urge all members to prepare to show Nigerians that ADC is a different party. A different party that is ready to properly run democracy in our country. All Nigerians must come together and take ownership of the ADC.”
Mark urged party members to set aside their differences and foster teamwork, emphasizing that “we must bond together to build the party before we can talk about ambitions.”
He also took a swipe at the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), charging them to desist from personal attacks and instead focus on addressing the policy failures raised by the ADC. “If they admitted that insecurity is bad and they promised Nigerians that they would improve on it but have made it worse, would Nigerians continue to support them? The answer is No,” Mark posited. “Let us continue to work to rebuild our nation and bring out her best in the overall interest of the future generations.”
In a related development, the ADC has accused the APC of deceptive practices, alleging that the ruling party used the names of non-ADC members to file a lawsuit against its interim leadership. The ADC claimed that the individuals named in the suit are not registered members in either their physical or digital registers in Kogi or Nasarawa State.
“It smacks of desperation that a party elected to take charge of the lives of no fewer than 200 million people can engage in shopping for the names of its citizens in pursuit of Machiavellian politics,” the party decried.
Meanwhile, a newly formed group, the National Legal Support Group for ADC, has pledged to tackle any legal challenges arising from the Mark-led interim leadership’s takeover of the party. The group’s leader, Mohammed Sheriff, announced in Abuja on Tuesday that no fewer than 97 lawyers have committed to representing the party in court.