Dumebi Kachikwu has dismissed suggestions that his bloc constitutes a faction within theAfrican Democratic Congress (ADC).
He noted that his camp remains the legitimate ADC structure
recognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Kachikwu spoke on Monday during an appearance on ‘Political
Platform’, a programme aired on AIT, a day after his group dissolved the David
Mark-led national working committee (NWC) and adopted him as its presidential
candidate for the 2027 election.
Addressing the lingering leadership dispute within the
party, Kachikwu noted that the real faction was the bloc associated with David
Mark, Atiku Abubakar and other opposition figures.
“Well, I’m sorry to tell you this, but we’re not a faction.
We are the ADC. The people whom you’ve mentioned, Atiku and co., are the people
who are factions,” he said.
He noted that the convention organised by his camp reflected
the authentic structure of the party, claiming it was attended by recognised
state executives from across the country.
“If you watched our convention yesterday, you will see ADC
faithful from all over Nigeria. All the state chairmen of the ADC, as
recognized by INEC, were there yesterday,” he said.
Kachikwu also dismissed the growing public profile of the
Mark-led bloc as a media creation, saying the perception of an alternative
power centre within the ADC had been exaggerated over the past year.
“I think what has happened is that in the last one year, the
media has built this myth about an ADC of David Mark and co., Atiku and co.,
Peter Obi and co., before they left,” he said.
“And I’ve always said, I mean, I said since last year, that
ultimately, when all the dust is settled, we’ll see the real ADC.”
He further claimed that his group acted within the bounds of
the law, noting that a subsisting court order empowered them to organise
congresses and conventions on behalf of the party.
“Because it’s a subsisting court order that said that we are
the only ones who have the right to conduct congresses and conventions. And
it’s based on that that we did conduct our convention yesterday,” he said.
When asked whether officials of INEC monitored the exercise,
Kachikwu replied: “Yes, they were there”.
The politician also accused the rival camp of attempting to
undermine him through media pressure and public sentiment after he refused to
yield control of the party structure.
“They said to me when they came into our party that they
will try me before the court of public opinion if I don’t let them have their
way. And I’ve said that I’m the last person who cares about your trial in the
court of public opinion,” he said.
Kachikwu ended the interview with criticism of the political
class, accusing politicians of prioritising power struggles while insecurity
continues to worsen across the country.
“Our country is at war. People are being kidnapped, people
are being killed every day, our streets are flowing with the blood of the
innocent,” he said.
“And so instead of our politicians should come to a round
table to say, ‘How do we stop this?’. We are playing politics with this.”
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com