Nigeria: Five Months to Elections, ADC Suspends Presidential Candidate, Kachikwu

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has suspended its presidential candidate, Dumebi Kachikwu, from the party.

This was made known in a statement issued Saturday by the party’s Deputy National Chairman (Politics), Dr. Bamidele Ajadi.
But in a swift reaction, Kachikwu said he remained the presidential candidate of the party in the 2023 general election.
Also, the state chairmen of ADC have declared that the suspension of Kachikwu, as null and void.
ADC accused Kachikwu of making false, misguided and defamatory videos, which he circulated, among other infractions.
Ajadi disclosed that the decision was taken after an emergency National Working Committee (NWC) meeting held on Friday, September 2, 2022.

He noted that the NWC strongly believed that to demean the character of the founders and financiers of ADC smacks of crass irresponsibility, gross indiscipline, disingenuous scandalisation and blackmail, and completely unfit of someone who wants to be President of Nigeria.
The party noted that there had been several actions, publications and utterances in the past aimed at maligning the ADC national officers, which the NWC chose to ignore, for peace to reign.
It added: “The NWC viewed with great concern the baseless and defamatory video made, published and circulated by Mr. Dumebi Kachikwu, which was intended to disparage and impugn the integrity and image of a peaceful and transformation-oriented African Democratic Congress and its national officers.”

The party also observed that Kachikwu’s speech in the said video contravened the principles and values upon which ADC was founded and the specific provision of Article 16 of the ADC constitution.
Quoting the party’s constitution, Ajadi said: “Act(s) conduct or utterances likely to bring the party into hatred, contempt or ridicule; engaging in dishonest practices, defrauding the party, its members or officials; engaging in anti-party activities; unauthorised publicity of party dispute or fractionalisation or creating parallel party organ(s) at any level; engaging in any other activities likely to cause disaffection among Party members or likely to disrupt the peaceful, lawful and efficient conduct of party business; belonging to any such factional group or organ; collusion or conspiracy to convene unauthorised meetings, shall constitute acts of gross misconduct.”

Ajadi also observed that the NWC strongly believes that demeaning the character of the founders and financiers of ADC smacks of gross indiscipline.
“His negative actions and/or inactions so far, have put in jeopardy the fate and prospects of all our candidates contesting for various offices across the country.

“The committee of the whole house, in a very clear and unequivocal term, condemned the said video in its entirety and described it as a piece of badly crafted blackmail and mudslinging, and thereby unanimously recommended his immediate suspension from the party from today, Friday, September 2, 2022.
“This resolution would be forwarded to the National Executive Council for further actions.”
Reacting to the suspension Kachikwu said the “illegal” constituted National Working Committee (NWC) lacks the power to suspend him.

He also said that the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party is set to appoint an Interim Caretaker Committee to run the affairs of the party after the expiration of the Ralph Nwosu-led National Working Committee (NWC) on August 28.
The presidential candidate explained that the chairman of the party initially asked people to speak with him on his plan to extend the tenure of the NWC by one year, which he declined.
“He has asked everyone to speak with me that I should give him a one-year extension and I said to him that’s absolutely out of the question”, Kachikwu said.

To perfect his plans, Kachikwu alleged that Nwosu called the NEC meeting, but barred the state chairmen from attending the meeting where his tenure was extended.
Also, the state chairmen of ADC have declared that the suspension of Kachikwu, as null and void.
State chairmen of the party, however, told a news conference in Abuja yesterday that a National Working Committee (NWC) whose tenure had elapsed could not suspend the candidate.
They said the tenure of the NWC lapsed in August.
Addressing the news conference, Mr Kingsley Ogga, Chairman of Forum of State Chairmen of ADC noted that the NWC had earlier convened a “fake and kangaroo’’ National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting on August 26.

He said the fake NEC meeting lacked the constitutional requirement of seven days’ notice to be held.
“The said meeting was overcrowded with unknown persons and miscreants. State chairmen walked out of the meeting as non-NEC members were seated in large numbers.
“The purpose of the illegal meeting is best known to the National Chairman, the National Secretary and other members of the NWC.
“The said purpose was revealed when the fake meeting purportedly extended the tenure of the NWC.
“It is, therefore, important to state here that what transpired on Aug. 26 at the ADC secretariat was fake, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect,’’ Ogga said.
He called on INEC to disregard the illegal suspension of Kachikwu and prevail on ADC to convene to elect a new NWC.

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

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