Nafiu Bala, factional national chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has rejected reports that he resigned his position as deputy national chairman.
His reaction followed the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC)’s resolution on Wednesday regarding the ADC leadership
crisis.
Bala spoke in a video published by Rariya Hausa.
He stated that a document claiming he resigned as national
vice-chairman on May 17, 2025 did not emanate from him.
“My name is Hon. Nafiu Bala, the ADC acting national
chairman,” he said.
“I would like to use this opportunity to address a document
currently circulating, which claims that I resigned from my position as
national vice chairman on May 17th.
“I wish to state that this paper did not come from me, and that is not my signature on it. The signature you see there was forged.”
Bala said his emergence as acting national chairman followed
the resignation of the party’s former leadership.
“If you didn’t forget, on the 2nd of July, we attended the
event where some people showed interest in joining our party, the ADC,” he
said.
“On that day, the former ADC chairman, Ralph Nwosu,
announced that he, his secretary, and other party leaders were stepping down
from their positions.
“On that same day, he told the world that I, along with
other people, would continue running the party affairs until the national
convention.”
Bala said he has therefore resumed office as acting national
chairman in line with the party’s constitution.
“Because of that, I am resuming office today as the ADC
national chairman. According to our party constitution, when there is no
leader, the deputy takes over,” he said.
Bala added that any resignation letter he would issue would
be done with his official letterhead.
“When I was deputy national chairman, if I were to write a
resignation letter, I would do it using my official letterhead,” he said.
“Any letter not containing my letterhead is not from me.”
On August 1, 2025, Bala had similarly denied authorship of
the resignation letter, dismissing the document as “entirely false, deceptive,
malicious and fake”.
LITIGATION
Bala’s purported resignation provides a significant sub-plot in the ADC leadership crisis.
On Thursday, David Mark, the former senate president who is
embroiled in the party’s leadership tussle with Bala, said: “One of the
officials in the dissolved NWC was Nafiu Bala, who was one of the Deputy
National Chairmen of the party. It is on record that Gombe resigned this
position on 17th May, 2025. His resignation was also duly transmitted to INEC
on the 12th of August, 2025. Regardless of his resignation, he decided to
approach the courts on September 2nd, 2025, four clear months after his resignation,
seeking to be recognised as the Chairman of the ADC.”
The litigation involving Bala and Mark over the chairmanship
of the ADC led to INEC withdrawing its recognition of the party and delisting
names of the Mark executive from its portal.
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 members
from parading themselves as party leaders.
He also sought an order to restrain INEC from recognising
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 an interim ruling, 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.
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