A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Salihu Lukman, has expressed concern over what he described as a plot to hijack party structures in certain state chapters by aspirants in the opposition party.
The former National Vice Chairman, North West of APC, in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, specifically disclosed that there is a growing dissension in the Kaduna State chapter of the ADC.
‘People with ambition to contest elections have become restless and want to dominate the process of developing the structures of the party to the exclusion of their opponents,’ he alleged.
The ADC chieftain listed former Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, Mallam Jaafaru Sani and Alhaji Bashir Saidu amongst individuals creating disaffection in the Kaduna State chapter.
He cautioned that failure to work together as a united political family would create a serious setback for the party ahead of the next general elections.
His statement read, ‘The madness of controlling structures of ADC is the biggest threat before us. For whatever reason, those of us who want the ADC to be an equal opportunity party are being condemned. Sadly, some of our leaders, instead of providing fair leadership, are taking sides with strengthening aspiring candidates for the 2027 elections across the state to the exclusion of others.
‘I want to use the opportunity of this independence anniversary to appeal to all of us to stop this madness of trying to take over the structures of ADC and control it to the exclusion of so-called opponents. If ADC is to emerge as a strong party capable of defeating the APC in Kaduna State, we must agree to work together. Anybody who is not ready to work as part of a united opposition in Kaduna State is consciously or unconsciously working for the APC.
‘I am making this strong appeal with a very deep feeling of disappointment that we are recklessly mismanaging an opportunity to provide the needed leadership to our people. In particular, I want to appeal to Mal. Nasir El-Rufai, Mal. Jaafaru Sani and Alh. Bashir Saidu, as the opposition leader in Kaduna State, please stop encouraging the madness of aspiring candidates seeking to take over the structures of ADC to the exclusion of so-called opponents.
‘At the individual level, I have tried to talk to those I can talk to. Unfortunately, I must also admit that I have failed in many respects. The fact that we have Sen. Musa Bello aggressively seeking to control the structures of ADC in Zone 2 is a reflection of my failure. Largely because I am, in recent times, associated with Sen. Musa Bello, Sen. Lawal Adamu (Mr. La) has avoided all my requests to meet him.
‘I have met Mallam Jaafaru Sani on this matter. We have had some discussions with Mal. Nasir. Sincerely, I am saddened by the fact that we are not united, and the perception is that I am part of the problem. As a citizen from Kaduna State, I am willing to make every necessary sacrifice to move our state forward. I have no ambition to contest the election. Without sounding immodest, I made every sacrifice to contribute to forming the coalition and negotiating the agreement with ADC.
‘May I therefore appeal to Mallam Nasir and all our leaders to please seek to unite all of us. It is only if we are united in ADC that we can unite our people in the state to defeat the APC in 2027. We must bear in mind that it is not just about defeating APC but more about producing a government controlled by our party (ADC) based on collective leadership. We need to put an end to the era when we produce emperors as Governors. Anything short of producing a Goverment managed by collective leadership under ADC will be unacceptable.
‘May God Almighty touch the hearts of all us and guide us towards unity both within the ADC and in the state. Amin. Happy Independence Anniversary. ‘