The leadership crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Cross River State has taken a fresh and more controversial turn, with the party’s purported legacy leadership rejecting the list of candidates recently published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the state.
According to Ogar, the disputed candidates emerged from congresses and a convention which his faction maintains were conducted illegally and unconstitutionally. He claimed that both the High Court and the Court of Appeal had annulled the exercises and awarded substantial costs against the faction.
The ADC chairman alleged that rather than resolving the dispute through reconciliation, the opposing faction proceeded with legal manoeuvres, including filing a stay of execution at the Court of Appeal, while allegedly obtaining repeated hearing dates that have prolonged the matter.
Ogar further alleged that the existence of the application was concealed from the legacy leadership, accusing the rival faction of deliberately misleading its supporters about the implications of the ongoing judicial proceedings.
At the heart of the dispute, according to the statement, is an alleged breach of an initial 30/70 per cent integration arrangement between contending interests within the party.
The legacy leadership claimed that the opposing faction also violated the ADC Constitution, the Electoral Act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by relying on an unelected caretaker committee instead of duly elected party executives.
The controversy has now moved beyond the internal structures of the party, with the Ogar led faction stating that it has taken the matter to the Supreme Court.
The group said its decision was aimed at defending the democratic process and preventing voters from being presented with candidates whose legitimacy, it argued, remains subject to judicial determination.
In one of the most explosive allegations contained in the statement, the ADC leadership suggested that some individuals involved in the crisis could be acting on behalf of external interests allegedly determined to weaken the opposition in Cross River State.
The group, however, did not identify any alleged external sponsors or provide evidence to substantiate the claim.
Ogar insisted that the dispute was not a personal battle but a struggle over the legality and integrity of the ADC structure in the state.
He declared that, based on the ADC Constitution, the 2026 Electoral Act, the Nigerian Constitution and existing court judgments, the faction associated with former Senate President David Mark lacks the authority, in his faction’s interpretation, to present candidates for the 2026 elections.
He consequently warned that candidates presented by the disputed executives could ultimately be excluded from the ballot if the courts uphold his faction’s position.
The party leadership also expressed confidence that INEC would comply with existing court judgments and abide by the eventual decision of the Supreme Court.
As the legal battle intensifies, the ADC crisis in Cross River State now presents a potentially significant test of how internal party disputes, court judgments and electoral nominations will intersect ahead of the 2026 elections.
Ogar said the party would continue to resist what he described as political impunity, insisting that integrity, justice and character must take precedence over transactional politics.
He assured supporters and the people of Cross River State that his faction remained committed to what he described as the fight to protect democratic values and ensure that the party’s candidates emerge through a lawful process.
Signed: Dr. John Ogar, Chairman, African Democratic Congress (ADC).
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