The suspended Ondo State chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Hon. Olaide Rasheed Ibraheem, has given the party’s national leadership 14 days to reinstate him and affected executives or face legal action, saying his removal was unconstitutional and violated the party’s constitution.
Ibraheem, who addressed journalists on Tuesday in Akure, the Ondo State capital, described his suspension by the ADC national leadership as unjust, asserting that he was elected through a duly conducted state congress on October 7, 2020 and has not since been replaced through another congress.
“I was elected as the state chairman of the party through a duly conducted state congress witnessed by security agencies and others as stipulated in the electoral Act,” Ibraheem said, defending the legitimacy of his leadership.
He alleged that the National Chairman of the party, Mr. Raphael Nwosu, removed him on November 28, 2024 “in an embarrassing and unceremonious manner,” without recourse to due process. Ibraheem said the action contravened Article 2 of the ADC constitution, which outlines the principle of party supremacy.
“The ADC constitution does not empower the National Chairman to remove a duly elected state chairman,” he said, calling the suspension ultra vires and violative of internal party democracy.
Ibraheem argued that the removal of state and local government executives without convening a congress and following constitutional procedures had thrown the Ondo State chapter into crisis.
He maintained that no state congress had been held in Ondo since his election, and therefore his mandate remained valid.
The suspended chairman also said he bore significant personal financial responsibility for party activities in the state during his tenure, in the absence of political office holders or subvention, and insisted that the party had been conducted in accordance with its constitutional provisions until the disputed action.
Ibraheem said he had delayed publicising the dispute in the hope that party elders would intervene and persuade the national leadership to reverse the suspension, but said this effort had not yielded results. He said the ultimatum was a last resort before pursuing legal redress.
“If within 14 days of this ultimatum, they fail to reinstate me alongside the state and local government executives removed, we will have no option but to seek redress in court,” Ibraheem stated.
He called on stakeholders within the ADC to intervene and uphold internal democracy, stressing that respect for the party’s constitution and rule of law were essential for unity and stability within the party.
The leadership crisis in the Ondo ADC reflects broader internal disputes within the party in various states, as factions contest control of party structures and question adherence to constitutional and democratic norms.
