“ADC Will Be On Ballot, But Atiku May Not” – Keyamo

Keyamo said the fate of the candidates would depend on the final determination of the party’s leadership dispute by the Supreme Court.

The minister stated this in a post on his verified X handle on Sunday, following concerns that a recent Federal High Court judgment against the Mark-led leadership could prevent the opposition party from fielding candidates in the elections.

The Federal High Court in Abuja had on Thursday nullified the Mark-led National Working Committee and invalidated decisions taken by the faction, including the presidential primary that produced Atiku as the ADC’s candidate for the 2027 election.

The judgment followed a suit filed by former ADC Deputy National Chairman (North-East), Nafiu Gombe, in which he challenged the process through which Mark and other members of the caretaker committee assumed control of the party.

Gombe argued that following the resignation of former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally entitled to take over the party’s leadership.

Reacting to the ruling, Keyamo dismissed suggestions that it meant the ADC would be excluded from the 2027 elections.

“For the education of the public, those raising false alarm that the court judgment on ADC means the party will not be on the ballot are spreading misinformation.

“The ADC will be on the ballot. It is the David Mark faction of candidates, including Atiku Abubakar, that may not be on the ballot, depending on the final judgment of the Supreme Court,” he said.

The minister also questioned why the judgment was being portrayed as an attempt to prevent the opposition party from participating in the elections.

He argued that candidates who emerged through the party’s original leadership structure should not be denied their political rights because of the dispute.

“Therefore, the question we must ask those raising hell is: are those Nigerians who successfully won their primaries under the faction of the original owners of the ADC lesser humans or lesser Nigerians than David Mark and Atiku Abubakar?” he asked.

Meanwhile, the Mark-led faction has rejected the judgment and vowed to challenge it in court. Atiku and the party have also indicated plans to appeal the ruling.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it would not take a position on the dispute until it obtains and studies the certified true copy of the judgment.

The outcome of the pending appeals is expected to determine which faction has the legal authority to control the ADC and nominate candidates for the 2027 general elections.