The African Democratic Congress (ADC) faction led by former Senate President David Mark has rejected claims by a rival group that it uploaded the names of presidential and National Assembly candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) nomination portal, describing the reports as false and calling for an investigation.
The rebuttal follows an announcement by a faction led by its National Chairman, Hon. Naf’iu Bala, which claimed on Sunday, July 12, that it had successfully uploaded its presidential, vice-presidential and National Assembly candidates to the INEC portal ahead of the 2027 general election.
Bala said the move reflected his faction’s determination to protect the interests of the party’s founding members and participate fully in the elections.
The claim came amid the ongoing leadership dispute within the ADC and shortly after INEC extended the deadline for political parties to submit their presidential and National Assembly candidates.
Responding on Monday, July 13, in a statement signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the David Mark-led leadership insisted the rival faction’s claim was untrue.
“The African Democratic Congress (ADC) wishes to draw the attention of the media and the general public to false reports claiming that a group led by Mr. Nafiu Bala Gombe has uploaded the names of a presidential candidate and other nominees to the INEC nomination portal. The claim is a blatant lie. And it is quite easy to verify why,” Abdullahi said.
He argued that INEC only grants access to its candidate nomination portal to the leadership it officially recognises.
“INEC does not issue nomination portal access or nomination codes to a leadership it does not recognise. Secondly, the Commission will not issue two codes to the same party.
“Otherwise, every impostor would simply upload names to the portal and proclaim themselves the authentic leadership of a political party. That is plainly not how the law or the Commission’s processes work.”
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The party challenged the rival group to produce proof of the alleged submission.
“The question, therefore, is straightforward: where is the evidence of this purported upload by a group of individuals not known by law or the electoral body?”
The ADC also called on INEC to investigate what it described as the unauthorised use of documents purportedly issued by the commission.
“We are also, by this statement, formally drawing the attention of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to what appears to be the forgery and unauthorised use of documents purportedly emanating from the Commission in a manner capable of creating confusion and undermining public confidence in its integrity and reputation as Nigeria’s electoral umpire.
“We trust that the Commission will investigate this matter and take the necessary steps to correct this blatant misrepresentation.”
The party maintained that it remains united and recognised by INEC.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the African Democratic Congress is not factionalised. INEC has issued nomination portal access only to the leadership it recognises, and that leadership has duly concluded the party’s nomination process in accordance with the Electoral Act and the Commission’s guidelines.”
Abdullahi further reiterated that the party had already uploaded the names of its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and vice-presidential candidate, Rotimi Amaechi.
“As we informed the public last week, the details of our Presidential Candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (GCON), and our Vice-Presidential Candidate, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi (CON), have been uploaded on the INEC portal. Those are the facts.”
He urged party members and the public to ignore what he described as attempts to distract the ADC ahead of the 2027 elections.
“As the election approaches, there will be repeated attempts to distract the party and mislead the public. We will not be distracted. Our focus remains firmly on presenting Nigerians with a credible alternative that can restore security, tackle the rising cost of living, revive the economy, create jobs, and return the country to the path of progress in 2027.
“We therefore urge our members, supporters, the media, and the general public to ignore these agents of distraction and rely only on official communications issued by the African Democratic Congress through its authorised channels,” Abdullahi said.