CITIZENS COMPASS— The strongest opposition party, African Democratic Congress (ADC), on Wednesday, suffered near collapse as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it has struck out the names of former Senate President, David Mark from its official portal.
The Commission said it also removed the name of former Osun State governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, from the portal.
Both names were removed as National Chairman and National Secretary of the party respectively.
The Commission also declined to recognise Hon. Nafiu Bala Gombe, who had approached the courts seeking to be affirmed as national chairman.
The decision, according to INEC, follows the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Suit No. CA/ABJ/145/2026 and ongoing proceedings at the Federal High Court.
INEC disclosed this in a statement signed by its National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mallam Mohammed Kudu Haruna.
It said it would no longer engage with any faction of the party, including monitoring conventions or congresses organised by either side.
The Commission anchored its decision on the appellate court’s directive for parties to maintain the status quo ante bellum, warning against any action that could undermine the judicial process.
The dispute stems from a leadership tussle that began after the resignation of the Ralph Okey Nwosu-led executive in July 2025, which paved the way for the emergence of the Mark-led National Working Committee. However, Gombe, who identified himself as the only surviving National Vice Chairman, challenged the process, insisting he should have automatically assumed leadership.
With INEC now stepping back from recognising any of the contending factions, analysts say the ADC faces a potentially crippling vacuum that could weaken its capacity to function as a cohesive political force.
The development is already being interpreted in some quarters as a significant setback for opposition realignments, especially at a time when the ADC had been touted as a possible rallying platform for political actors seeking to challenge the dominance of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
For now, the electoral body has effectively frozen all formal dealings with the party pending the outcome of the case before the Federal High Court in Abuja — a situation that leaves the ADC in limbo at a critical moment in Nigeria’s evolving political landscape.
