– As Mikati’s camp rejects Ashiru’s certificate of return

A fresh crisis has erupted in the Kaduna State chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) after supporters of another aspirant, Hon. Idris Shuaibu Abubakar Mikati, rejected the Certificate of Return issued to former governorship candidate Hon. Isa Ashiru.

The Mikati camp, comprising the Kaduna State ADC Youth Vanguard and support groups across the 23 local government areas, described the certificate issued to Ashiru on October 4, 2026, as illegal and procedurally flawed.

In a statement signed by Usman Sani on behalf of the coalition, the group alleged that the ADC national leadership issued the certificate despite a pending internal dispute and court case over the party’s May 2026 governorship primary in Kaduna State.

The development has reopened the controversy over the primary’s outcome, in which Ashiru was declared the winner with 86,113 votes.

The coalition said four aggrieved aspirants, including Mikati, subsequently challenged the result before the party’s Electoral Appeal Committee chaired by Dr Mustapha Fagge.

According to the group, the appeal committee reviewed the petitions and evidence presented to it and overturned Ashiru’s declaration, declaring Mikati the party’s authentic candidate.

Supporters alleged that the National Working Committee (NWC) had not yet formally considered and ratified the appeal committee’s report, despite being the party organ responsible for its day-to-day administration.

They further claimed that the NWC had not met for more than six months, alleging that it issued the certificate without resolving the conflicting positions arising from the primary and subsequent appeal.

“How can a party establish an internal dispute mechanism and then ignore its own verdict?” the coalition queried, describing the certificate’s issuance as “ultra vires and without due process.”

The group therefore rejected the certificate issued to Ashiru, insisting it was “null, void and of no effect” because, according to them, it lacked a ratified decision by the NWC or National Executive Committee (NEC).

The coalition also called on the ADC national leadership to reverse the decision, convene an emergency NWC meeting, and consider the Fagge-led Appeal Committee’s report.

It said Mikati had approached the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, to challenge the development, warning that any attempt to submit Ashiru’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) could face further legal challenge.