ADC dismisses Mark’s resignation, says party leadership united, focused in its mission

Over 500,000 Nigerians have joined ADC since INEC derecognition, says Abdullahi

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has dismissed as false and malicious reports alleging that its National Chairman, Sen. David Mark, has stepped down from his position.

This is contained in a statement by Paul Mumeh, from the Media Office of the National Chairman, the party described the claim as “an insidious fabrication” orchestrated by individuals it termed as “puerile, weak, and inconsiderate propagandists.”

The party affirmed that Mark remains the substantive National Chairman of the party, stressing that there is no contemplation whatsoever of his resignation either by him or the leadership of the ADC.

“The assertion that Mark has stepped down exists only in the warped imagination of those bent on spreading falsehood and creating confusion within our party,” the party said.

The party emphasised that the ADC leadership remains united, focused, and resolute in its mission to strengthen democratic values and provide credible leadership to Nigerians.

It warned against attempts to destabilise the party, noting that such efforts are driven by fear of the ADC’s growing influence and the emerging political permutations ahead of the 2027 general elections.

“The ADC, its leadership, and the majority of Nigerians are unbending in their collective determination to resist any plot aimed at undermining Nigeria’s multi-party democracy or imposing a one-party system,” it said.

Reaffirming its commitment to democratic ideals, the party called on Nigerians to disregard the rumours and remain confident in the leadership and stability of the ADC.

Meanwhile, National Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Bolaji Abdullahi, says about 500,000 Nigerians have joined the party since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) de-recognised its two factions.

Since July 2025, when the opposition coalition assumed leadership of the ADC, the party has been grappling with internal crises, with Nafiu Bala Gombe, former deputy national chairman, and the David Mark-led group laying claim to its leadership.

The crisis culminated in protracted legal disputes, which prompted INEC to de-recognised the two factions on Wednesday, citing the March 12 judgement of the court of appeal.

In a statement signed by Mohammed Haruna, INEC’s commissioner for information and voter education, the commission said it would refrain from engaging either faction.

The commission added that it would not attend meetings, congresses, or conventions of the groups pending the determination of a case before the federal high court.

However, in a terse post shared on his X handle on Sunday, Abdullahi said since the commission posted the de-recognition statement on April 1, ADC has recorded over 500,000 new members.

“Between 7:00 pm on April 1st, when @inecnigeria released its statement, and 5:00 pm today, over half a million (500,000) new Nigerians have joined the ADC,” he wrote.

The ADC spokesperson also made a similar post on Thursday, saying that over 40,000 members have registered to join the party following INEC’s move.

“Between 7:00 pm last night when the INEC Statement came out, and 7:00 AM this morning, over 40,000 people have registered to join ADC on http://adcregistration.ng,” he posted.