The African Democratic Congress (ADC) is facing a serious internal crisis with four of its most prominent voices publicly staking out irreconcilable positions that threaten to fracture the party before it fields a single candidate in the upcoming general elections in 2027.

In a matter of days, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi, former Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola, and the organised supporters of former Anambra Governor, Peter Obi, have each issued statements and declarations that collectively paint a picture of a party at war with itself.

Former Vice President Abubakar has declared that he will not step down for any candidate ahead of the 2027 presidential election, dismissing behind-the-scenes efforts to persuade him to make way for a consensus arrangement within the ADC.

Atiku, who has contested the Nigerian presidency more times than any other individual in the country’s democratic history, made clear that he intends to pursue his presidential ambition regardless of pressure from within or outside the party.

Sources close to the former vice president say he remains convinced that he is the opposition’s strongest presidential material and has the structure, the resources, and the experience to mount a credible national campaign.

His refusal to consider a step-down arrangement has drawn frustration from several party stakeholders who believe that a united opposition front requires one of the leading figures to make a sacrifice for the collective. So far, Atiku has shown no indication that he intends to be that person.

Amaechi, the former Rivers State governor and minister, has gone a step further, publicly stating that Abubakar is too old to contest the presidency in 2027.

The statement, delivered without diplomatic softening, has sent shockwaves through the party.

Amaechi’s remarks are being interpreted in party circles as more than a personal opinion. Many see it as a direct move to delegitimise Atiku’s candidacy in the court of public opinion before any primary process begins.

Party insiders say the relationship between the two men, never particularly warm, has deteriorated sharply in recent months as both manoeuvre for the position ahead of the party’s presidential ticket.

Amaechi has made no secret of his own presidential ambitions and is believed to be assembling a support base within the ADC.

His remarks bordering on age have angered Atiku’s camp, with one source close to the former vice president describing them as “disrespectful and politically motivated.”

The exchange has introduced a bitterness into the party’s internal dynamics that observers say will be difficult to walk back.

Aregbesola has also broken cover, declaring that he will not invest his political energy in a campaign that centres on Obi and benefits the South East at the expense of other geopolitical zones.

Aregbesola’s statement is being read in the party as a significant blow to the prospects of building the kind of cross-regional coalition that any serious presidential candidate will require to win a national election in Nigeria.

His remarks directly challenge the assumption held by Obi’s supporters that the former Labour Party candidate’s appeal transcends regional boundaries and can command genuine support from political figures across the country.

Aregbesola’s blunt refusal suggests otherwise, and party officials privately acknowledge that his position reflects a broader unease among non-South East stakeholders about the direction the party’s presidential politics appear to be heading.

Adding to the party’s mounting headache, the organised supporters of Peter Obi, widely known as the Obidient Movement, have issued what amounts to an ultimatum.

They are insisting that it is Obi or they will withdraw their support and back another party entirely. The threat is being taken seriously by party leadership.

In 2023, the Obidient Movement demonstrated a capacity for political mobilisation that surprised even its own architects, delivering Obi a third-place finish and over six million votes in a presidential election he entered as a relative outsider.

The movement retains strong support among young, urban, and educated voters, a demographic that no opposition party can afford to lose ahead of 2027.

However, the ultimatum has also irritated other party stakeholders, some of whom privately complain that the Obidient Movement’s my-way-or-the-highway approach makes internal negotiation nearly impossible.

“You cannot build a party on the terms of a fan club,” one senior ADC figure said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

ADC party leadership is understood to be deeply alarmed by the pace and public nature of the divisions.

Senior officials have held several emergency consultative meetings in recent weeks in an attempt to manage the escalating tensions, but sources within the party say no meaningful resolution has been reached.

“What we are seeing is not a disagreement about policy or direction,” one party official told our correspondent.

“It is a collision of ambitions. And ambitions of this size do not resolve easily.”

The party, which had positioned itself as a credible home for opposition figures dissatisfied with the APC and the PDP, now risks being defined not by what it stands for but by the very public spectacle of what its leading figures cannot agree on.

With the 2027 election cycle drawing closer and the window for building a coherent national campaign narrowing, pressure is mounting on the ADC to resolve its leadership question or face the prospect of arriving at the most consequential election in recent Nigerian political history divided, demoralised, and outmanoeuvred before the contest has even begun. (The Sun)

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