Senator Ajibola Basiru, National Secretary of the ruling All Progressives Congress has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to completely deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Basiru said the opposition party has failed to justify its continued existence.
He said INEC should have gone beyond the derecognition of the leadership of the party led by former Senate President David Mark and proceed to remove the party entirely from the list of registered political parties.
Speaking at the party’s National Secretariat in Abuja, Basiru, alongside the National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, described the ADC as a drain on national time and resources.
Basiru said the party’s poor electoral performance and lingering internal disputes make a strong case for its deregistration.
“You look at the bye election in 17 constituencies, they won no seat. FCT Area Council elections, they won no chairmanship or councillorship seat. Same day, state constituency by-elections were conducted in Rivers and Kano states and they won no seats too.
“Even the quantum of votes they had in all the elections was nothing to write home about. Ordinarily, INEC should deregister them because they are just wasting the time and resources of Nigerians,” he said.
The APC also dismissed allegations by a faction of the ADC that the administration of Bola Tinubu is working to weaken opposition parties in a bid to establish a one party state.
According to Basiru, the crisis within the ADC is self-inflicted saw and rooted in what he described as a faulty leadership transition that culminated in a failed legal challenge at the Court of Appeal.
“Anytime they lose a case, democracy is in danger but any time our party loses in court, they will say democracy is alive. It is very laughable,” he said.
On the internal wrangling within the party, Basiru added, “You went and stole a rickety vehicle and if the vehicle has a brain box problem, you cannot blame us.”
The APC maintained that INEC only acted in line with a subsisting court order directing parties to maintain the status quo, following the dismissal of an appeal filed by David Mark on procedural grounds.
He insisted that neither the president nor the electoral body should be blamed for the legal setbacks suffered by the opposition party.
“If Senator Mark and his factional ADC leadership believe INEC’s interpretation is flawed, they ought to know the proper channel to seek redress, the courts.
“The public defiant posture of Senator Mark and his factional ADC leadership against orders of the Court of Appeal and its implementation by INEC not only amounts to self help but recklessness,” Basiru added.
He also faulted the ADC’s demand for the removal of the INEC chairman and commissioners, questioning the logic behind such calls.
“I think they are not ready for the elections because even if you sack the entire management of INEC as they are demanding, who will appoint another management? So, if the president appoints another management team in line with the Constitution, will they ask that those ones be sacked again?” he queried.
The APC urged the opposition party to focus on resolving its internal crisis instead of shifting blame, warning that any attempt to proceed with congresses in defiance of court orders would attract consequences.
The crisis within the ADC has deepened lately following conflicting claims to the party’s leadership and a series of legal disputes that culminated at the Court of Appeal.
The appellate court dismissed an appeal filed by the faction led by former Senate President David Mark on procedural grounds and ordered parties to maintain the status quo.
Following the ruling, the Independent National Electoral Commission moved to recognise the existing leadership structure in line with the court’s directive, effectively sidelining the disputed faction.
However, the development has continued to generate controversy, with aggrieved members and some Nigerians challenging the commission’s interpretation of the judgment.