By Joe Ephraim, Calabar
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Cross River State is confronting a deepening internal crisis, with a senior party official warning that the party risks electoral annihilation in 2027 unless constitutional order is restored.
Dr. MacFarlane Ejah, the party’s State Vice Chairman (Central) and Director of Policy and Strategy, issued the warning in Calabar on Tuesday, declaring that the ADC must not become a “judicial casualty” in the next general elections.
Ejah accused the party’s national leadership of emerging through unconstitutional means, arguing that any electoral victories achieved under the current structure could be invalidated by the courts.
“What is at stake is the very survival of our party in 2027,” Ejah said. “If we allow illegality to persist, even victories at the polls will be meaningless because they can be overturned. That is why we are taking a stand now.”
The crisis, according to Ejah, stems from a July 29, 2025, meeting at Chelsea Hotel in Abuja, where the party’s National Executive Committee was allegedly dissolved and replaced with an interim leadership. He contended that the ADC’s 2018 Constitution makes no provision for caretaker or interim arrangements, requiring instead that all party officers emerge through congresses.
“There is no emergency clause that allows anyone to appoint themselves as leaders,” Ejah said. “What happened was a clear breach of both the party constitution and the Electoral Act.”
He warned that the implications for the 2027 elections could be severe, noting that candidates produced through what he described as an illegal process would occupy precarious legal ground.
“If an illegal leadership conducts congresses or produces candidates, those candidates are standing on shaky legal ground,” he said. “We have seen parties lose everything in court due to flawed internal processes. We will not walk into that trap.”
Ejah disclosed that he has submitted a formal petition to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) under Section 83(2) of the 2026 Electoral Act, seeking to prevent the alleged interim leadership from acting on the party’s behalf and to halt scheduled congresses planned for April 7–14, 2026.
“We have given INEC a seven-day ultimatum to act,” he stated. “If they fail to do so, we will proceed to the High Court to enforce compliance with the law.”
Dismissing suggestions that the dispute represents factionalism, Ejah insisted that the matter is a straightforward case of constitutional violation.
“You cannot violate the constitution of a party and then claim legitimacy,” he said. “There are no factions here—only a deviation from due process.”
He explained that internal conflict resolution mechanisms had been exhausted over eight months without meaningful response, prompting the decision to seek judicial redress.
The ADC chieftain also rejected assertions that influential political figures were attempting to commandeer the party, vowing that the Cross River chapter would resist any external imposition.
“ADC is not for sale,” he declared. “You cannot come from outside, ignore existing structures, and attempt to hijack what others have built. We will resist that with everything we have.”
He downplayed the role of financial influence in the crisis, emphasizing that the state chapter operates through collective contributions rather than reliance on external financiers.
“The moment you allow moneybags to bankroll you, you lose your independence,” Ejah said. “We are not prepared to mortgage our principles for financial convenience.”
He concluded by affirming the Cross River chapter’s commitment to internal democracy and constitutionally compliant party processes.
“We are not fighting to destroy the ADC,” he said. “We are fighting to save it—so that when 2027 comes, we are not counted among those who lost not at the ballot, but in the courtroom.”
