The leadership crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Katsina State has worsened following the emergence of two separate state executives from parallel congresses conducted earlier in the week.
The development underscores growing divisions within the party, which has recently positioned itself as a major opposition force in the state after defections from the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
At a congress held on Tuesday, a faction of the party reaffirmed Musa Wamba as state chairman, with Nasir Umar emerging as secretary-general.
However, another group led by the former Secretary to the Katsina State Government, Dr. Mustapha Mohammed Inuwa conducted a separate congress on Thursday, producing Mohammed Rimi as chairman and Abubakar Adhama as secretary-general.
Speaking at the Thursday congress, the Deputy National Organising Secretary of the ADC, Atiku Saleh, dismissed the Tuesday congress as unauthorised and therefore invalid.
He explained that the party’s national headquarters had approved a schedule for the congresses, with ward and local government exercises slated for Wednesday and the state congress fixed for Thursday.
“The screening committee constituted by the national headquarters has scheduled Wednesday for the ward and local government congresses, while the state congress is to hold on Thursday,” he said, insisting that any process outside this framework would not be recognised.
Despite its recent growth, the ADC in Katsina has been plagued by internal wrangling, largely driven by tensions between longstanding members and new entrants into the party.
While one faction argues that the tenure of the current leadership has expired, the opposing camp maintains that critics are outsiders bent on destabilising the party.
The crisis now raises concerns about the party’s cohesion and its ability to consolidate its status as a viable opposition platform in the state ahead of future political contests.
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