The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has revealed that it turned down substantial financial inducements intended to make it withdraw from its role in Nigeria’s opposition coalition.
Ralph Nwosu, the party’s founder and pioneer National Chairman, made the announcement during the ADC National Executive Committee meeting in Abuja on Tuesday evening.
Speaking with party leaders, including members of the National Working Committee, NEC, and Board of Trustees, Nwosu emphasised that the decision was made to preserve democracy.
He stated, “We have taken these steps so that Nigerian democracy can return to the right path. While some individuals or one party try to turn Nigeria into a one-party state, a fascist state, it was only the ADC that said, No. Our party, the ADC, stood firm. And Nigerians embraced us for that.
“No matter how much money you spend, you can’t fight all Nigerians. Some politicians, opportunistic as they are, believe it’s all about money. They say, ‘If you can’t get them with this amount, just add more.’ But in the ADC, especially among the NWC members, we said, No. We rejected every offer, both in Nigeria and abroad, over the past year.
“ADC leaders stood firm and said, ‘Enough is enough.’ We are determined to put our democracy first. Our democracy is back on track. And you know what? We are expanding everywhere because of competence.”
The former ADC National Chairman expressed concern about the country’s challenging circumstances, saying that despite several hurdles, the party has grown from a little political group to one of Nigeria’s largest.
He stated, “If you go to every local government in this country—whether it’s in the North, Southeast, Southwest, North Central, Northeast, or Northwest—the number of people registering every day exceeds that of any other party. Our website crashed three times because of the number of young people trying to register online.
“It will take a little re-engineering of our hearts, minds, and souls to get it right—and all of that is encapsulated in the ADC.
“Navigating the process that brought us here—what we did on July 1st was one of the toughest processes. But we did it together: NWC members, NEC members, and BoT members. We’ve gone from being a party that struggled to win five House of Representatives seats; we won about five or six, but three were lost at the tribunal, and we ended up with two.
“Now, that same party, because of clear steps taken, is running for Nigeria and for our democracy. We all agreed to do everything possible. Today, your party has over 100 elected persons, even without an election: about 28 senators and 46 House of Representatives members. The number of State House of Assembly members we have is hard to count, but they are over 50.”
In his remarks, ADC interim National Chairman David Mark thanked the party leaders for their faith in him and promised to serve the party with integrity, transparency, courage, and vision.
He declared that, “I assure you that under my leadership, we shall be committed to full democratic practices and principles that abhor imposition and special privileges. Internal democracy, transparency, and accountability will be our mantra.
“We will guarantee collective leadership at all levels. We will build a technically competent bureaucracy for the party and ensure structured financing. All members will truly own the party.
“We will be fair and just to all party members. We promise to be totally transparent. ADC will have zero tolerance for anti-party and other forms of indiscipline.
“We shall revamp our grassroots leadership structures to reflect modern realities. From the polling units and wards up to the national level, every organ will be re-energised.”
Mark charged Nigerians to join the party, emphasising that the ADC is the only political platform that offers equal opportunities to all, irrespective of age, gender, religion, or region.
He continued, “We will open the gates for the next generation. Our policies, nominations, and leadership roles will reflect meaningful inclusion of youths and women and not just tokenism. This is why we have reserved 35% of our leadership positions for women. It is also our commitment to have youths below the age of 40 years in our leadership.
“Within the shortest possible time, the NWC will raise committees to review the manifesto and the constitution of our party to meet and reflect the aspirations of the Nigerian people.
“We shall clearly articulate what we stand for. Nigerians must know us as a party driven by unblemished ideology, progressive policies, and patriotic governance. We will not leave it to the discretion of individual candidates to choose what to do with power.
“Therefore, in the coming days, we shall announce a 50-member policy committee to cover health, education, agriculture, good technology, security, economy, infrastructure, and other services.”
