Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
The African Democratic Congress (ADC), has said that new members in the party are eligible to contest elective political positions only after spending two years in the party.
This was contained in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary Mabel Akomu Oboh on behalf of its National Secretary, Said Baba Abdullahi, as part of the Performance Appraisal and General Election Review Committee reports and made available to newsmen in Benin.
Abdullahi stated that it was observed that as much as many political parties in Nigeria face internal rancor, ADC’s internal squabbles could have been avoided but for the indiscipline on the part of some members, aspirants, and candidates on one hand and lack of proper screening template on the other.
The National Secretary added that another factor was also due to misinformation and deliberate propaganda.
He maintained that the Appraisal team observed that the party was penetrated by fifth columnists, ominously planted in ADC, but were agents of destabilization from other parties.
He said the ADC 2023 Performance Appraisal and General Election Review Committee has made it clear that the crisis and the antics of some fifth columnists were largely responsible for ADC’s not-too-impressive performance and failure to meet its set targets.
He said the Appraisal report observed that over 90 percent of the purveyors of the whole trouble were contestants and members who were election-year entrants to the party with less than 6 months of membership.
He however said that the committee report has cautioned that ADC puts a two years ceiling for any member before standing for any election or becoming an executive member at both state and national levels.
The release by the National publicity secretary says that ADC approved the recommendation and appointed Peace and Reconciliation Committee with Lady Jumoke Lawoyin as Chairman and Dr Aminu A. Anas as secretary, other members are Hon. Salman Idris (MHR), Mabel Oboh, Chief Mrs Biola Are, Hon Hauwa Lawal and Barr Emeka Igwe.
The National chairman chief Ralphs Nwosu thanked the Appraisal Team for a job well done and said that their report will help the party learn good lessons from the bad rubbish just as he mandated its seven-man Peace and Reconciliation Committee to resolve all intra-party disputes arising from the 2023 general elections with the view of putting the party in right footing and restoring its lost glory.