𝐈𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐃𝐂 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐂𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐬—𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐰, 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐨 𝐓𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬

Eshioromeh Sebastian

Former Senator Ishaku Abbo has issued a warning to members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Adamawa State, declaring that the party’s leadership structure is illegal and that anyone who contests elections under it risks losing their mandate in court.

Abbo, who represented Adamawa North Senatorial District, called on his supporters and aspirants to abandon the ADC immediately, citing two subsisting court orders that the party allegedly disobeyed during its recent congresses. He announced that he will unveil a new political party this weekend, urging his followers to wait for him.

Abbo’s warning stems from the controversial conduct of the ADC’s ward, local government, and state congresses held in Adamawa State between April 9 and 11, 2026.

According to multiple court documents, at least two separate court orders had restrained the party from going ahead with the exercise.

On April 10, 2026, the Adamawa High Court, presided over by Justice Kyanson Lawanson, granted an order stopping the ADC from conducting its congresses in the state.

The order was granted following an ex parte application filed by Israel Ishaku and was to subsist pending the determination of a substantive suit .

Similarly, another High Court in Yola, presided over by Justice Ahmad Isah, had ordered the immediate suspension of all congresses scheduled for April 9, 10, and 11.

The court directed all parties to maintain the status quo pending the hearing of a motion on notice filed by the party’s state chairman, Shehu Yohanna .

Despite these judicial directives, the ADC went ahead with its congresses. Abbo alleged that when a court bailiff attempted to serve the court order on the chairman of the congress committee, Ishaya Bauka, the official refused service and fled.

“When the court bailiff introduced himself to the chairman of the congress committee and handed over the order and the processes to him, he refused service and instead started to run like a wild rabbit,” Abbo wrote on his Facebook page .

The congress committee, for its part, insisted it was unaware of any legal action stopping the congress and maintained that all processes remained on course.

Abbo invoked the legal catastrophe suffered by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Plateau State during the 2023 general elections as a cautionary tale.

In November 2023, the Court of Appeal in Abuja sacked Napoleon Bali, the PDP candidate for Plateau South Senatorial District, and declared former Governor Simon Lalong of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the duly elected senator.

The appellate court held that the PDP had no legal ground to participate in the election because it disobeyed a Plateau High Court judgment that ordered the party to conduct lawful elections for the selection of its officers at the ward, local government, and state levels.

“Disobedience and disregard for clear lawful order of the court was fatal because PDP hurriedly put an illegal caretaker committee in place in utter confrontation to the court judgment,” Justice Elfreda Williams-Dawodu ruled .

The consequence was sweeping: all PDP candidates who contested elections for the House of Assembly, House of Representatives, and Senate in Plateau State lost their seats to APC candidates who came second.

Abbo warned that the same fate awaits any aspirant who runs for office under the current ADC leadership in Adamawa.

“I do not want to lose my seat to the courts again, and I do not want anyone else to suffer my affliction,” he said.

The ADC in Adamawa has fractured into at least three warring factions. One faction is loyal to Babachir Lawal, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, who backs Sadiq Dasin as chairman of a “State Transition Committee.” Another faction is led by Shehu Yohanna, who insists he is the legitimate chairman. A third faction is loyal to former Senator Aisha Binani .

Both Binani and Abbo have now announced their departure from the ADC. The Binani faction cited “total collapse of internal democracy” and manipulation of party congresses as reasons for its exit, declaring the ADC structure in Adamawa “illegitimate and unacceptable” .

Abbo, meanwhile, accused Lawal of single-handedly fueling the crisis and ignoring court orders to hijack the party structure. He described the situation as a “nuclear weapon” gifted to the ruling APC, warning that if the controversial congresses are allowed to stand, the party risks disqualification from the 2027 general elections .

Under the new Electoral Act, politicians have until May 10, 2026, to change their party affiliation without losing their eligibility to contest elections . Abbo urged his supporters to remain calm and not rush into any other political platform.

“Kada ka Riga Ladan zuwa masalachi. WAIT FOR ME,” he wrote, a Hausa phrase meaning “Don’t arrive at the mosque before the call to prayer.”

He drew inspiration from Senegal’s recent presidential election, where Bassirou Diomaye Faye won the presidency just weeks after being released from prison. Faye was incarcerated for 11 months and freed only 13 days before the election, yet he defeated the ruling party’s candidate .

“I have been out there meeting the people for about three years now and we have more than 10 months to the general elections. WE HAVE TIME,” Abbo said .

The former senator, who lost his seat in the 2023 election, said he has been mobilising grassroots support across Adamawa State for three years and expressed confidence that his new political platform will deliver victory in 2027.

“Peter Obi moved to the Labour Party barely six months before the election and won 12 states, the same as Tinubu whose party was in power for eight unbroken years,” Abbo noted. “We have over 10 months until the elections and you are telling me that it’s too late to move to a new party and win the election?”

What This Means For Aspirants

For ADC members and aspirants in Adamawa State, Abbo’s warning carries significant legal weight. Any candidate who emerges from the disputed congresses risks having their candidacy nullified by the courts, potentially long after they may have been sworn into office—as happened to PDP lawmakers in Plateau State.

With the May 10, 2026 deadline for party switching approaching, Abbo’s followers face a critical decision: remain in a factionalised ADC with questionable legal standing, or wait for the new platform he promises to unveil this weekend.

Abbo has urged patience and loyalty, promising that his yet-to-be-named party will provide a legitimate and winning platform.

“All our supporters should be on alert and fully prepare for the 2027 elections as I lead from the front,” he said. “POLITICS IS WAR, YOU DON’T WIN WAR BY BEING NICE” .