The All Progressives Congress (APC) has criticised the African Democratic Congress (ADC) over its reaction to a recent court judgment affecting the leadership of the opposition party, accusing its leaders of blaming external forces for an internal crisis.
The ruling party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, on Friday, said the ADC should focus on resolving its leadership dispute rather than accusing the APC of involvement in the matter.
Morka said the court case that led to the judgment was initiated by ADC members against other leaders of the party, stressing that the APC was neither a party to the suit nor involved in the legal proceedings.
“Every time a court decides against the Senator David Mark-led factional African Democratic Congress (ADC), they accuse the All Progressives Congress (APC) of collusion and deprecate the judiciary,” Morka said.
He added that the opposition party only recognised the judiciary when judgments favoured its position, describing such reactions as an attack on judicial independence.
The APC spokesman argued that the crisis within ADC was a result of internal disagreements among its leaders, particularly over the emergence of the David Mark-led leadership structure.
According to him, the court judgment was a consequence of actions taken by ADC leaders themselves and not a product of interference by the ruling party.
Morka said the Federal High Court judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, which removed the David Mark-led leadership of ADC and nullified actions taken under the leadership, including some electoral processes, demonstrated the strength of Nigeria’s judicial system.
“APC is neither a party nor an interlocutor in the matter. Nothing about the case has anything to do with the APC,” he said.
The APC further advised ADC to pursue available legal options if dissatisfied with the judgment instead of engaging in accusations against the ruling party.