The leadership crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) deepened on Friday as the faction led by the party’s National Chairman, Nafiu Bala Gombe, and House of Representatives member, Leke Abejide, has rejected their reported expulsion, describing it as illegal and the product of a “hijacked structure.”

The duo also dismissed claims that they were being sponsored by President Bola Tinubu, insisting that allegations of external sponsorship were mere propaganda aimed at discrediting their stance.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, Bala maintained that those who announced their expulsion lacked the legal standing to do so, arguing that they were not recognised members of the party.

“Our suspension is nullity. These individuals are not even members of our party, so they lack the locus to take such decisions. We will fight it to the last point,” he said.

He further ruled out any form of negotiation with the rival bloc, stating that there was no agreement between his leadership and the coalition-backed faction.

“I cannot negotiate with people who are not members of our party. There is no understanding or arrangement with them whatsoever,” Bala added.

The crisis follows a convention held in Abuja on April 14 by a faction aligned to former Senate President, David Mark, where the expulsion of Bala, Abejide and others over alleged anti-party activities was announced.

But the Bala-led leadership has dismissed the exercise as unlawful, insisting it violates subsisting court orders and lacks the recognition of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

He warned that actions taken in defiance of a Court of Appeal judgment delivered on March 12, 2026, were liable to be voided by the courts.

According to him, the matter has gone beyond internal party disagreement, alleging that forged documents bearing his signature had surfaced as part of efforts to legitimise the actions of the rival group.

On his part, Abejide described the purported expulsion as laughable, accusing the opposing faction of attempting to destabilise the party.

“These are people who came to destroy this party. They have no stake here and cannot dictate the future of ADC,” he said.

The lawmaker, who represents Yagba Federal Constituency of Kogi State, warned that the lingering crisis could jeopardise the party’s electoral prospects if not urgently resolved.

“I am not a political merchant running from one party to another party. I have been in ADC since 2017 and never changed party but many of the coalition’s leaders have moved from PDP to ACN to APC back to PDP to APGA to Labour Party to NNPP to ADC, and so on. Our insistence in resisting them is because of their habitual character of political use and dump.

“My so-called suspension and that of Nafiu Bala Gombe is in contempt of the orders of both the Court of Appeal and Federal High Court and as such I have briefed my Lawyers on possible litigation against their purported suspension for record purpose, which is a visitation of hostility on me while my case is in court. The principles of law forbid this; in our jurisprudence it is called Lis pendis.”

Abejide cautioned that his camp would not hesitate to walk away if the party was pushed to the brink.

“At the stage we are now, if this is not resolved quickly, anyone contesting on this platform risks their political career,” he added.

He also questioned the credibility of the coalition figures, alleging that many of them had a history of moving across multiple political parties.

Abejide warned that the ongoing crisis could prevent the ADC from fielding candidates in future elections, blaming the rival faction for any such outcome.

“If at the end of these shenanigans ADC cannot field candidates, then the coalition people should be blamed for the failure,” he added. (The Guardian)

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