The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has assembled a legal firepower of 97 lawyers to fight what it described as a “fake and politically motivated lawsuit” allegedly sponsored by the All Progressives Congress (APC) against its interim leadership.
Naija News reports that the party made this known on Tuesday during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja, where its Interim National Chairman, David Mark, and former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, met with members of the ADC Kogi State chapter.
Leading the legal team, Barrister Mohammed Sheriff accused the APC of dragging the ADC to court using the names of individuals who are neither party members nor affiliated with its structures in Kogi or Nasarawa states.
“It smacks of desperation that a party entrusted with leading 200 million Nigerians would engage in such dishonesty,” the ADC said in a statement following the meeting.
Senator Mark used the meeting to reaffirm his commitment to democratic values and transparency within the party, assuring stakeholders that his leadership would not favour any presidential hopeful.
“I don’t own this party more than any other member. This party belongs to every Nigerian who believes in true democracy,” he said.
He urged party members to close ranks and prioritise unity over internal rivalry, warning that continued apathy toward politics could jeopardise Nigeria’s democratic future.
“Our democracy will fail if Nigerians continue to sit on the sidelines. We must all get involved,” Mark added.
In a veiled criticism of the ruling party, Mark slammed the APC for what he described as a failure to address Nigeria’s security challenges, despite its campaign promises in 2015 and 2019.
“If they admitted that insecurity was bad and promised to improve it, but instead made it worse, should Nigerians continue to support them? The answer is no,” he declared.
The ADC claimed its internal probe revealed that the names used in the APC-sponsored suit were not registered members of the party and accused the ruling party of deliberately sowing discord within its ranks.
The statement released by the party’s media team reads, “The ADC accused the APC of deceiving Nigerians by using the names of non-ADC members to file a suit against the party and its interim leadership.
“The party alleged that the names which the APC used to file their suit were neither in the ADC physical nor digital registers in Kogi or Nasarawa State.
“It smacks of desperation that a party elected in charge of the lives of no fewer than 200 million people can engage in shopping for the names of its citizens in pursuit of Machiavellian politics.
“Meanwhile, the National Legal Support Group for ADC has expressed its readiness to represent the ADC in the courts over the matter filed against the party and its interim officers.
“Making this revelation in Abuja yesterday, the leader of the group, Barrister Mohammed Sheriff, said no fewer than 97 lawyers have indicated their preparedness to stand for the party.”