Party Turmoil: ADC Faction Rejects Peter Obi’s Membership, Sparks Controversy

A faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), led by its National Chairman, Nafiu Gombe, has rejected the reported defection and registration of former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, at the party’s Enugu zonal office.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The group, which claims to represent the ADC’s legitimate national leadership, said the purported registration breached the party’s constitution and established membership procedures.

Obi was officially presented as an ADC member at an event held at the Nike Lake Resort in Enugu, where he urged the formation of a broad opposition alliance to “rescue Nigeria from poverty, disunity and democratic decline.”

In a New Year statement released in Abuja on Thursday, Gombe said the party found it necessary to clarify what it described as misleading claims regarding the proper process for joining the ADC.

“It has been reported that an individual identified as Mr Peter Obi was registered at a zonal office in Enugu. The National Working Committee categorically states that such an action does not conform with the constitutional and prescribed procedures for membership registration into the African Democratic Congress,” Gombe said.

He explained that the ADC constitution requires all prospective members to register at the ward level within their state of origin or residence, which serves as the only recognised entry point into the party.

“Registration must take place at the ward level. Membership cards are issued only after successful registration and verification at that level,” he stated.

Gombe stressed that the party’s constitution does not recognise registration at zonal or national offices outside a member’s designated ward, noting that any such exercise is deemed irregular and invalid.

He added that the party had launched an investigation into the matter and urged members of the public to disregard claims suggesting alternative registration processes.

The statement was issued a day after the Julius Abure-led National Working Committee of the Labour Party reacted to Obi’s defection, describing it as a “liberation.”

In a statement by the Labour Party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, the party said Obi’s departure merely formalised a political separation that had existed for months, amid the party’s lingering leadership crisis.