Some concerned stakeholders in African Democratic Congress (ADC) have faulted the appointment of a former Interior Minister, Alhaji Rauf Aregbesola, as the party’s Interim National Secretary.
The stakeholders made their position known in a statement issued by Dr Musa Matara, on Wednesday in Abuja.
Matara, who claimed to be the party’s National Publicity Secretary, insisted that ADC was not a private coalition platform to be hijacked by any elite group.
He faulted the emergence of Aregbesola as the party’s interim national secretary, saying that the appointment did not follow due process as well as the ADC’s guidelines.
According to Matara, the stakeholders’ group comprises the youth and women leaders, state party executives and ward coordinators across the country.
He said that while the stakeholders appreciated the enthusiasm with which Aregbesola delivered his acceptance speech as the interim national secretary of ADC, they, however, rejected the process of his appointment.
According to him, Aregbesola’s appointment lacks due process, transparency and the broad-based legitimacy expected in a democratic setting.
“ADC is not a private coalition platform to be hijacked by any elite group or individuals, regardless of how eloquent or ideologically-polished their speeches may sound.
“Our party has structures, leadership organs, youth and women wings and constitutional guidelines, none of which was consulted or respected in the announcement of this so-called appointment,” he said.
Matara wondered why Aregbesola was talking about internal democracy, ideological discipline and inclusiveness in his acceptance speech while the circumstances surrounding his emergence contradicted the process of internal democracy.
“Who appointed Aregbesola? Which organ of the ADC ratified this appointment? Was the National Executive Committee (NEC) involved? Were state chairmen, youth leaders and elected national officers consulted?
“If the answer is ‘No’, as it clearly is, then this “appointment” is null and void,” he said.
Matara also denied the claim that ADC had become the ‘platform of the National Opposition Coalition Group’, describing it as misleading.
He advised new members coming into ADC through coalition to tread carefully and be mindful that some few individuals were attempting to sell out the soul of the party for personal gains.
Matara maintained that ADC was not for sale, adding that it belonged to its members, not political merchants or elite dealmakers.
“Our millions of members have not been informed or carried along in this so-called coalition.
“If anyone is attempting to force an opposition merger without grassroots consent, they are trampling on democratic ethics and party sovereignty.
“Let it be known to those who are trooping into our party under this chaotic coalition arrangement that the ADC has been battling unresolved legal crises since the 2023 general elections.
“These matters remain in court and unresolved. Any coalition attempt built on such shaky legal ground is irresponsible and potentially self-destructive,” he said.
Matara further stated that the idea that “the party must be supreme” could not be used as a tool to silence dissents or sideline authentic party stakeholders.
According to him, party supremacy begins with consultations and consensus, not executive pronouncements disguising as patriotic rhetoric.
He expressed the stakeholders’ firm commitment to accountable leadership, transparent decision-making process and a people-powered party structure.
“Any process that excludes the very people it claims to serve is undemocratic and must be challenged.
“We call on all genuine stakeholders of the ADC across states, zones and demographic groups to reject this attempted takeover of our party.
“We are not opposed to coalitions. We are not opposed to reform. But we are opposed to hijack, to imposition and to speeches that sound revolutionary but hide elitist intentions beneath poetic language.
“Until a legitimate, constitutionally-backed ADC national convention or NEC confirms leadership changes, no one has the moral or legal right to speak for our party nationally,” he said.
However, in his reaction to the statement, the ADC National Chairman, Raph Nwosu, said that Matara was not known to the party.
“You have covered us for how many years now? The guy is unknown to ADC. He is a rabble rouser and a mercenary. It’s not unexpected.
“Mabel Oboh has been the national publicity secretary of our party. I don’t know who Matara is,” Nwosu said.
(NAN)
