By Georgina Humphrey
The Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Dumebi Kachikwu, says he remains the candidate of the party for the 2023 election despite his purported suspension by the former National Working Committee of the party headed by Ralph Nwosu.
Reacting to the Suspension at a news conference in Abuja, Kachikwu stated that neither Nwosu nor the defunct National Working Committee chaired by him has the power to suspend him having elapsed on August 28, 2022.
The ADC presidential candidate, who was flanked by the state chairman of Kogi, Mr. Temitope Ogga and his Edo State counterpart, Mr. Kennedy Odion, described his claimed suspension by an illegal NWC as a joke since he had not done anything to warrant suspension having won the election to fly the party’s ticket as its flagbearer.
He however explained that he was not surprised by the illegal attempt by the Nwosu-led group to suspend him as he sought his support to remain in office for another term, but he declined on the grounds that he had been chairman for more than 17 years and should give way in line with the constitution of the party and Nigeria.
” state chairmen of the party and members of the NWC were against the continuation of Nwosu as chairman of the ADC after 17 years and requested for an election on August 28, 2022 but the meeting was stalled by Nwosu and his group to prevent the emergence of a new chairman and NWC members” he emphasized.
“In accordance with the constitution of the ADC, the tenure of the chairman and his NWC members elapsed on August 28, 2022 and it is only the National Executive Council, NEC, made up of state chairmen of the party, which has the power to run the affairs of the party and take decisions”
“That was why the elements behind my purported suspension sent out an unsigned document to the media since none of them has any mandate to take any legal action on behalf of the ADC having ended their tenure since August 28, 2022.
Kachikwu promised not to allow his mandate to be traded by some pecuniary-minded elements as they had been doing in the past when many candidates were substituted for financial gains,”
The ADC Presidential candidate appealed to the Independent National Electoral Commission to take note of the attempts by some elements in the party to foist themselves on power beyond the limits provided by the constitution and to stand firm to ensure that democracy is not derailed by such antics.
Dr. Bamidele Ajadi, who indicated his position as the Deputy National Chairman (Politics), had announced the suspension of Kachikwu on Saturday morning, claiming that the decision was taken after an emergency National Working Committee (NWC) meeting which held on Friday, September 2 for allegedly making a false, misguided and defamatory video to embarrass the party and its members.
