- Faults court ruling against Mark-led ADC
The Social Democratic Party (SDP), on Thursday, condemned the Federal High Court judgment that nullified the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) led by Senator David Mark, describing the ruling as a threat to Nigeria’s democracy.
The party also rejected the purported “rainbow coalition” being championed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, accusing the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of orchestrating clandestine plots to infiltrate opposition parties and weaken their internal structures ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The National Chairman of the SDP, Prof. Sadiq Gombe, stated the party’s position while addressing journalists in Abuja following a consultative engagement between the National Working Committee (NWC) and the party’s governorship candidates across nine states.
Prof. Gombe declared that the SDP would resist any maneuver designed to subvert democratic norms and deny Nigerians the freedom to choose their leaders without judicial or political interference.
“We condemn the so-called disqualification of the ADC leadership and presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar. This is a democracy. We want Nigerians to be allowed to freely exercise their franchise,” Gombe said.
If a political party present a candidate, it has the right to do that. We will not allow anything that will truncate our democracy because we have come a long way in this journey.”
Gombe further warned that any SDP member involved in the proposed coalition would be subjected to severe internal disciplinary proceedings.
“So, we have taken a stand that as much as we are not part of anything to do with rainbow coalition, sanctions and other disciplinary measures await any member of our party who engages in it,” he stated.
In addition, the party urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to publish an authentic, verified, and clean voters’ register without further delay to allow for thorough scrutiny by the public and political stakeholders ahead of the 2027 polls.
Explaining the rationale behind the high-level meeting, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Araba Rufus Aiyenigba, noted that the parley was the first phase of consultative sessions with its standard-bearers, adding that other candidates would be hosted in subsequent batches.
Governorship candidates in attendance included the Nasarawa State candidate and Chairman of the SDP Governors’ Forum, Mohammed Adamu; Mogaji Agboola (Oyo); Prof. Sebastine Tar (Benue); Mohammed Mohammed (Niger); Christopher Nathaniel (Adamawa); Dr. Simple Dafup (Plateau); Ibrahim Bushira (Kano); Adam Ma’aji (Gombe); and Ayuba Katagun (Bauchi).
Adamu, a former Inspector-General of Police, stated that the meeting evaluated strategic operational frameworks to secure victories across the presidential, governorship, and legislative elections.
He explained that the candidates reviewed situational reports from their states to identify and plug operational gaps that the ruling party could exploit during the polls.
“But we know that Nigerians are tired of the APC and need change. The only alternative is the SDP because it has the interest of the masses at heart. We also plan to elevate their living condition so everybody gets what he needs to get. It is the neglect of the masses that is causing so many problems in the country,” Adamu said.
- Media Report