…Bala group presses ahead with 2027 preparations, nationwide presidential tour to begin November 16
Keyamo: ADC will be on the ballot, but Atiku might not be
By Yinka Giwa
The leadership crisis engulfing the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has entered a new phase following the circulation of a nationwide presidential campaign timetable bearing the name of Professor Chris Uba as the party’s 2027 presidential candidate, even as former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has approached the Court of Appeal to challenge the Federal High Court judgment that invalidated the Senator David Mark-led leadership.
The development comes as Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, declared on Sunday that the ADC would participate in the 2027 general elections, although former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and other candidates nominated by the Mark-led faction could ultimately be excluded from the ballot, depending on the outcome of the legal proceedings.
The campaign timetable, sighted by KTH Daily, carries the name and photograph of Dr Nafiu Bala Gombe as ADC National Chairman and prominently features Professor Chris Uba as the party’s presidential candidate.
The document outlines a proposed nationwide presidential campaign tour covering all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory between November 16, 2026, and January 14, 2027.
Its circulation comes days after Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja delivered a judgement invalidating the emergence of the Mark-led ADC leadership and the decisions taken under its authority, including the presidential nomination of Atiku Abubakar.
The timetable, bearing the heading “2027 Presidential Campaign Tour — National Campaign Timetable,” schedules the commencement of the campaign in Kano on November 16, followed by Jigawa on November 17 and Katsina on November 18.
Other northern states listed include Kaduna, Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, Gombe, Bauchi, Taraba, Plateau, Nasarawa, Benue, Niger and Kogi.
The campaign is scheduled to reach Kwara on December 14 and Abuja on December 15 before proceeding through the South-West, South-East and South-South.
Lagos is scheduled for December 24, Anambra for December 27, Rivers for January 7, 2027, and Delta for January 11.
Edo is the final state listed, with a campaign date of January 12.
An accompanying notice, attributed to the ADC national leadership, directs party structures, state executives, local government coordinators and campaign committees to study the timetable and commence preparations.
It also directs that all campaign activities be conducted peacefully and in accordance with electoral laws and INEC guidelines.
Although the document carries Gombe’s name as signatory, KTH Daily has not independently authenticated it or established that the factional leadership formally authorised its circulation.
Nevertheless, the document is consistent with the Gombe faction’s previously announced intention to proceed with its presidential campaign.
The faction had unveiled Uba as its presidential candidate in May, following a consensus nomination process, and subsequently announced a presidential campaign council in October.
Following Thursday’s judgement, Gombe also directed candidates nominated under his leadership to resume their political campaigns.
The emergence of the timetable therefore places renewed attention on the competing presidential nominations within the ADC, particularly the status of candidates produced by the party’s leadership before the emergence of the Mark-led coalition.
AREGBESOLA APPEALS JUDGMENT, SEEKS STAY OF EXECUTION
Meanwhile, Aregbesola, who served as National Secretary under the Mark-led leadership, has formally appealed against the November 5 judgement.
In a notice of appeal filed on Friday, November 6, through his lawyer, Mohammed Sheriff, SAN, Aregbesola asked the Court of Appeal to set aside the judgement on grounds that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to determine the leadership dispute.
The notice of appeal, made available to KTH Daily on Sunday, listed Nafiu Bala Gombe, the ADC, Senator David Mark, the Independent National Electoral Commission, and Chief Ralph Nwosu as respondents.
Aregbesola specifically challenged the trial court’s decision to entertain claims relating to his emergence as national secretary and the validity of resolutions adopted at the ADC’s 99th National Executive Committee meeting.
He argued that the Federal High Court wrongly interpreted the relevant provisions of the Electoral Act and the ADC constitution in determining the legitimacy of the leadership changes.
According to his counsel, the trial judge erred in treating the absence of a democratic election at the 99th NEC meeting as sufficient grounds for invalidating Aregbesola’s assumption of office.
The appeal maintained that Article 23(4) of the ADC constitution permitted the appropriate executive organ to appoint an eligible replacement pending an election at the next convention or congress.
Sheriff argued that the lower court failed to distinguish between an election to fill a vacancy and an interim appointment authorised by the party’s constitution.
He contended that the provisions of Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act 2022 and Section 223(1)(a) of the 1999 Constitution had been wrongly applied to the circumstances of the case.
Aregbesola also asked the appellate court to set aside the declaration that Gombe’s four-year tenure remained valid and that he was entitled to oversee the affairs of the ADC.
Alternatively, he requested that the affected claims be returned to the Federal High Court for rehearing before another judge.
In a separate motion dated November 7, Aregbesola sought a stay of execution of the judgment pending the determination of his appeal.
The application, filed in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, asked the court to suspend the enforcement of the relevant orders arising from Justice Lifu’s decision.
His counsel argued that the appeal raised substantial questions of law and fact requiring consideration by the Court of Appeal.
KEYAMO: ADC WILL BE ON BALLOT, ATIKU MAY NOT
In another development, Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo has offered an interpretation of the judgment that draws a distinction between the ADC as a registered political party and the candidates nominated under its disputed leadership.
Writing on X on Sunday, Keyamo dismissed suggestions that the Federal High Court judgment would automatically prevent the ADC from participating in the 2027 general elections.
“For the education of the public, those raising false alarms that the court judgment on ADC means the party will not be on the ballot are spreading misinformation,” he stated.
“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.”
Keyamo’s remarks suggest that the dispute may ultimately turn on which faction’s nomination processes are legally valid rather than whether the ADC itself remains eligible to contest the elections.
The minister also questioned the argument that candidates nominated by the party’s earlier leadership structure should lose their opportunity to contest elections because of the subsequent emergence of the Mark-led coalition.
“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.
His comments lend prominence to the position advanced by Gombe, who has consistently challenged the legality of the leadership changes that brought Mark and Aregbesola into office.
HOW GOMBE’S LEGAL CHALLENGE CHANGED THE ADC CRISIS
The dispute originated from the leadership transition following the resignation of former ADC National Chairman Chief Ralph Nwosu.
Gombe maintained that, under the party’s constitution, he was entitled to assume the national chairmanship following Nwosu’s departure.
He consequently challenged the emergence of the Mark-led leadership, arguing that the process violated the ADC constitution and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act.
In his suit, Gombe sought orders invalidating the decisions taken by the disputed leadership and restraining Mark, Aregbesola, and other members of their interim National Working Committee from presenting themselves as the party’s legitimate national officers.
Mark and Aregbesola opposed the suit, maintaining that Gombe was no longer a deputy national chairman when Nwosu resigned and therefore lacked the constitutional basis to assume the chairmanship.
Justice Lifu, however, ruled in favour of Gombe, setting aside the disputed leadership arrangements and the decisions flowing from them.
The judgement has consequently raised questions about the validity of the presidential primary that produced Atiku and the nominations of other candidates associated with the Mark-led leadership.
For the Gombe faction, the ruling provides judicial support for its longstanding challenge to the leadership transition, although the appeal means the dispute has not reached a final resolution.
INEC RECOGNITION REMAINS CRITICAL
Despite the Federal High Court judgement and the circulation of Uba’s campaign timetable, the question of which presidential candidate will ultimately be recognised by INEC remains unresolved.
In July, INEC rejected claims that the Gombe faction had successfully uploaded Uba’s presidential nomination to its portal.
The commission explained at the time that access to the nomination platform had been granted to the Mark-led leadership, which submitted Atiku and former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi as its presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
There has been no independently confirmed announcement that INEC has subsequently replaced Atiku with Uba.
The latest court judgement, however, introduces a significant legal development that the electoral commission may have to consider alongside any appellate decisions.
The situation has also brought renewed attention to the rights of candidates nominated through competing party structures and the implications of disputed leadership arrangements for electoral participation.
KTH Daily reports that with Aregbesola challenging the judgement, Gombe’s faction proceeding with campaign preparations and Keyamo maintaining that the ADC itself remains eligible to contest the elections, the immediate focus is shifting towards the Court of Appeal and INEC.
For now, the Gombe faction has secured a favourable Federal High Court judgement and is associated with a proposed nationwide presidential campaign programme bearing Uba’s name.
Whether those developments ultimately translate into INEC recognition of Uba as the ADC presidential candidate will depend on the resolution of the outstanding legal and electoral questions.
Observers are convinced that the coming days will be significant for both factions as the November 16 commencement date advertised in the circulating campaign timetable approaches.
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