ADC APPEAL COMMITTEE DIVIDED OVER KADUNA GOVERNORSHIP CANDIDATE. (PHOTO).

 ADC Appeal Committee Divided Over Kaduna Governorship Candidate

A fresh dispute has emerged within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Kaduna State, as members of the party’s Primary Election Appeal Committee have issued conflicting rulings on the outcome of the governorship primary election.

While the committee’s secretary and several members reaffirmed Isa Ashiru as the party’s duly elected governorship candidate, the committee chairman, Dr. Mustapha Fagge, announced a separate decision recognizing Shu’aibu Idris-Mikati as the ADC flagbearer.

Speaking to journalists at the ADC State Secretariat in Kaduna on Tuesday, the committee secretary, Dr. Mikailu Ibrahim Barau, said his faction upheld the primary election results that produced Ashiru, based on records compiled by the party’s electoral committee.

Barau insisted that Ashiru remains the validly nominated candidate and urged the party’s National Secretariat to disregard the so-called “Abuja Declaration,” which allegedly led to the substitution of Ashiru’s name.

According to him, the chairman’s decision did not reflect the collective position of the committee and was reached without the participation of the secretary and other members.

“The replacement of Isa Ashiru’s name as the party’s flagbearer is procedurally flawed and does not represent the committee’s collective findings,” Barau stated. He added that only the party’s national leadership has the authority to confirm or substitute a candidate, not the chairman of an ad hoc appeal committee.

Barau further called on the National Secretariat to review the committee’s official draft report alongside all petitions submitted during the appeals process. He also recommended the formation of a restructured appeal committee to ensure broader consultation and proper documentation.

He appealed to party members to remain calm, expressing confidence that internal democracy would prevail.

“We will not allow the personal interests of a few individuals to undermine the collective aspirations of our party ahead of the elections,” he said.

In a separate briefing, however, committee chairman Dr. Fagge announced that the panel had affirmed Shu’aibu Idris-Mikati as the ADC governorship candidate after examining petitions and evidence presented by aggrieved aspirants.

Fagge maintained that the committee unanimously endorsed Idris-Mikati’s emergence after determining that he secured the highest number of valid votes in the primary election.

He also claimed that evidence submitted before the panel revealed irregularities and alleged fraudulent activities involving some of the competing governorship aspirants, which influenced the committee’s final decision.