FORMER National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Mohammed Lukman, has suspended his membership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the opposition coalition, citing what he described as persistent hostility from some coalition figures in Kaduna State.
News Point Nigeria reports that Lukman conveyed his decision in a letter addressed to the National Chairman of the ADC, Senator David Mark, and copied to key leaders of the opposition coalition, explaining that his continued participation had become untenable due to internal disagreements over the direction and leadership of the coalition in Kaduna.
The former APC chieftain specifically accused former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, and his associates of subjecting him to unfair treatment, alleging that decisions surrounding the coalition’s leadership structure in the state were deliberately manipulated to sideline him.
“This may come to you as a disappointment. I am very sorry. I just can’t continue to bear the painful hostile treatment I keep getting from some leaders from Kaduna, especially Mallam Nasir,” Lukman stated in his message to Senator Mark.
Lukman claimed that after investing more than a year in efforts to reconcile opposition stakeholders and build a united political platform in Kaduna, he was instead subjected to what he described as an organised campaign against him by El-Rufai and his supporters.
According to him, the situation had left him feeling abandoned within an organisation he helped to strengthen, saying he had been reduced “to the status of a bastard” in a coalition he worked tirelessly to build.
“For Mallam Nasir and his people, I am the problem. I have decided to resolve the problem for them and everyone,” he said.
The former APC national officer explained that his decision to suspend his ADC and coalition memberships was aimed at preserving his dignity, adding that it was preferable “to be inactive than to continue to chase dashed expectations.”
Lukman also raised concerns over the coalition’s commitment to democratic principles, accusing some of its leading figures of adopting the same political practices they had previously criticised while in opposition.
He further alleged that former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, had been engaging political actors in Kaduna whose commitment to the growth of the ADC was questionable, while those who had invested time and resources in building the party’s structures were being overlooked.
The development, he said, had weakened his confidence in the coalition’s prospects ahead of the 2027 general elections, arguing that the ADC risked becoming “a marginal participant” in the emerging political contest.
However, Lukman clarified that his decision was not directed at Senator David Mark or the national leadership of the ADC, whom he appreciated for their efforts, but was instead a reaction to what he described as the treatment he received from El-Rufai and some coalition actors in Kaduna.
