ADC Youths Issue 72-Hour Ultimatum to INEC
The youth wing of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has threatened nationwide protests unless the electoral umpire reverses its recent leadership “derecognition.” During a heated press conference in Abuja on Monday, National Youth Leader Balarabe Rufa’i gave the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 72 hours to reinstate David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola as the party’s National Chairman and Secretary. The ultimatum follows INEC’s April 1 decision to scrub the duo from its records, a move the commission claims complies with a court order to maintain the “status quo.”
Rufa’i accused INEC of overstepping its constitutional boundaries by attempting to interpret judicial directives. He argued that the “status quo” legally refers to the leadership established during the July 2025 National Executive Committee meeting, which INEC initially supervised and recognised. By suddenly removing these names based on “pending motions” and “letters,” the youth leader insists the commission has traded its neutrality for partisan complicity. The ADC has been trapped in a factional quagmire since 2022, but the 2025 transition to Mark’s leadership was supposed to signal a fresh start.
The crisis stems from a bitter tenure dispute involving former chairman Ralph Nwosu. While some factions supported the 2025 transition, others, led by Nafiu Bala Gombe, claimed the acting chairmanship for themselves. This internal friction has birthed a web of litigation spanning the Appeal and Supreme Courts. David Mark, however, remains defiant. Speaking last week, he dismissed INEC’s delisting as “unlawful” and vowed that party congresses would proceed as planned, regardless of the commission’s digital records.
The ADC youth wing is now calling for more than just a reversal of the delisting. They are demanding the immediate resignation or removal of the INEC Chairman, alleging a “grave breach” of the Constitution. Rufa’i appealed to the National Assembly to exercise its oversight powers and investigate what he described as institutional sabotage. He also issued a pointed warning to the military to remain neutral, stressing that the dispute is a strictly civil and constitutional matter that should not be met with force.
If the 72-hour window closes without a response, the group plans to mobilise “coordinated peaceful protests” across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. The threat to “lawfully occupy” INEC offices nationwide reflects a growing frustration with the perceived weaponisation of electoral institutions. For many young members, the dispute is a litmus test for the 2027 general elections. They fear that if a party’s leadership can be erased with a keystroke, the integrity of the entire democratic process is at risk.
INEC maintains that its hands are tied by the judiciary. Commissioner Mohammed Haruna stated that the removal of Mark and Aregbesola is a procedural necessity to satisfy a trial court’s order. Yet, the ADC’s legal team contends that no final judgment has authorised such a purge. As the clock ticks toward the Thursday deadline, the standoff between the electoral body and the country’s third-largest political force threatens to spill from the courtroom onto the streets.