Public affairs analyst Marcel Ngogbehei has accused opposition politicians of treating Nigeria’s political parties as personal vehicles for their presidential ambitions, alleging that they routinely hijack existing party structures and abandon them following electoral defeats. He made these claims in a statement released on Saturday, reacting to a recent Abuja High Court judgment that removed the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) under former Senate President David Mark.
According to Ngogbehei, the ADC crisis is particularly instructive because the party was adopted by opposition heavyweights seeking to challenge the All Progressives Congress (APC), only to become engulfed in leadership disputes and litigation over the legitimacy of its structure. He noted that the ADC has already appealed the court’s decision. The analyst argued that Nigeria must move away from a political culture where established parties are taken over by powerful figures, leaving original members struggling for control of the organizations they helped establish.
Ngogbehei cited the political trajectories of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi as examples of what he described as the instability and opportunism characterizing opposition politics. He maintained that these figures frequently sideline founding members and take over party structures, only to leave the platforms when their electoral calculations fail.
He argued that, unlike opposition party leaders, President Bola Tinubu's political experience demonstrated a commitment to building enduring political structures.
In support of this view, Ngogbehei recalled Tinubu’s role in the development of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), the Action Congress (AC), the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), and the subsequent formation of the APC. He suggested that this history contrasts with the alleged pattern of abandonment seen in opposition circles.
The comments come amid ongoing legal battles within the ADC, which has sought to overturn the Abuja High Court’s ruling on its leadership. The dispute highlights broader tensions within Nigeria’s opposition landscape regarding party ownership and the sustainability of political alliances.
<small>Source: Daily Post Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>
