Ahead of the 2027 general elections, the hope of having a united opposition front to battle the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, is suffering a major blow following the decision of key leaders to abandon the coalition over a dispute regarding the presidential ticket.
The alliance, formed under the African Democratic Congress, ADC, aiming to challenge President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid, has collapsed.
In March 2025, former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, former Senate President, David Mark, former governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, ex-Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, and former APC National Chairman Abdullahi Adamu formed the coalition with a plot to sack President Tinubu in 2027.
On July 3, the opposition leaders, including Obi and other heavyweight politicians from opposition and ruling parties, adopted ADC as a platform to contest the election.
Former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, former Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami were also among the top members of the coalition, with former governor of Kano State, Rabiu Kwankwaso and his court-like supporters joining the movement on March 20, 2026 after dumping the New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP.
However, members of the coalition began to split recently following leadership disputes rocking the party and the quest for the party’s presidential ticket.
Meanwhile, negotiation for the coalition’s sole ticket broke down after weeks of deadlock between the camps of Atiku and Obi, alongside other contenders jostling for the nation’s top job.
How ADC slipped into unsolvable crisis
On July 2, Ralph Nwosu, the party’s founder and former national chairman, announced the resignation of the National Working Committee, NWC, members of the party, paving the way for an interim leadership structure headed by David Mark.
However, a few months after the David Mark-led leadership took over the party, the arrangement was contested by a faction led by Nafiu Bala, one of the deputy national chairmen of the party.
In what observers described as very surprising twists, Bala declared that he never resigned his position, arguing that he ought to have replaced the chairman after his resignation, as captured in the party’s constitution.
Bala then declared himself the national chairman of ADC, vowing to go against the Mark leadership in court.
On September 2, 2025, Bala approached a Federal High Court in Abuja (Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025), seeking to stop Mark’s team from parading themselves as party leaders.
He also sought an order to restrain INEC from recognizing them and to compel recognition of himself as acting national chairman.
He further filed motions seeking to stop the party from holding meetings, congresses, or conventions pending the determination of the suit.
The motion ex parte was heard on September 4, 2025, and Emeka Nwite, the trial judge, directed that the respondents, including INEC, be put on notice to show cause why the motion ex parte should not be granted.
Dissatisfied with the interim ruling, David Mark filed an appeal challenging the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court to continue to hear Bala’s suit.
However, on March 12, 2026, the Court of Appeal dismissed Mark’s case in its entirety, holding that it was incompetent and unmeritorious, leading the matter to the Supreme Court.
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, subsequently suspended recognizing the David Mark-led faction.
On April 30, the Supreme Court restored the leadership of David Mark as National Chairman of the ADC.
While the apex court set aside the order of the Court of Appeal that had directed parties to maintain the status quo ante bellum, it stopped short of delivering a final verdict on the underlying leadership dispute.
The Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, ruled that the Court of Appeal acted beyond its jurisdiction by issuing orders after dismissing the appeal before it.
However, the court only allowed part of Mark’s appeal and directed all parties to return to the trial court for continuation of hearing.
Battle for ADC presidential ticket
Analysts have maintained that one of the key reasons for the split of the opposition leaders was the party’s inability to zone its presidency.
While Atiku and his followers were lobbying party leaders for the ADC presidential ticket, Obi believes that he is more qualified, insisting that it is still the turn of the South.
Obi’s camp accused Atiku of plotting to financially induce party leaders to enable him to grab the ticket, a development that the former governor’s supporters had earlier warned against.
Recall that the Obidient Movement had in 2025 declared that their principal would not participate in any ‘dollarized’ primary election.
The fallouts have triggered realignment with other parties as Obi and Kwankwaso on Sunday picked up the Nigerian Democratic Congress, NDC, membership cards, dumping ADC.
Media hous also recalls that a former federal lawmaker, who represented Adamawa North Senatorial District in the 9th Assembly, Senator Ishaku Abbo also quit his membership of ADC on Sunday.
The leader of SIA MOVEMENT joined the Labour Party, citing the protracted leadership tussle in ADC.
Similarly, two House of Representatives members from Kano State, Umar Datti and Sani Wakili on Sunday resigned from the ADC ahead of their defection to the NDC.
According to insiders, more members of the ADC will dump the party next week ahead of the INEC deadline.
In a chat with Journalist on Sunday, a chieftain of ADC, Benue State chapter, Dr Shiminenge Damna claimed that the Tinubu government had been plotting to split the opposition leaders for selfish gain.
He said, “President Tinubu is not afraid of Atiku, he is not afraid of Peter Obi, neither is he afraid of Kwankwaso but he is definitely afraid of them coming together. This is the reason for the crisis in ADC.
“They have succeeded in scattering the leaders. The only thing that will be difficult for them now is how to separate Obi and Kwankwaso, but as it stands, Atiku is going to be on ballot and Obi will be on ballot too.
“The divided vote that gave Tinubu victory in 2023 is what they’re about to repeat in 2027.
“Watch out, the whole crisis in ADC will end this week. You will look for Bala and you won’t find him, why?
“He has completed his task. They only want to split votes from the opposition.”