The 37 state chairmen of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) have thrown their weight behind the interim leadership of the party led by former Senate president David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola.

The ADC Forum chairman Kingsley Ogga, who is also Kogi State chairman of the party, spoke after the ADC interim leadership met with chairmen in Abuja yesterday.

Some acclaimed party chairmen had decried the process that led to adoption of ADC as the coalition party. They decried not being carried along in the process.

But speaking after the Abuja meeting, Ogga said the party leaders had been on the process that led to the adoption of ADC as coalition party for almost three years.

He said, “We have been carried along on what they are going to do, how they are going to do it. We sat down together, we deliberated together. That is how we did it before we came to this particular point we are at now, the coalition.”

He said the party chairmen are united behind the interim leadership, saying

“Yes, every one of us, everybody because everybody was carried along. We were all carried along and we were part of it. And we have also supported what is coming up now.”

Speaking on the essence of the meeting, the national publicity secretary of ADC, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the state party leaders were invited to reassure them that they won’t be pushed away.

He said, “the 37 state chairmen including FCT were present here. And the purpose is to dispel all kinds of falsehood and rumours that have been going around the country that we have come to take over this party from them and to push them away.

“We don’t have any intention to shove them off. We are here to work with them as partners to build a stronger political party.

“And they are assured and they are going to leave Abuja today more confident than they were yesterday that they are partners in the building of this coalition.”

On the claim by a former ADC presidential candidate who dismissed the coalition and its new leadership, Bolaji said “A presidential candidate is not an officer of the party. A presidential candidate is just someone, a member of the party.

“We are on a solid legal ground. And if anyone has any evidence to show that we have violated our own constitution, we are open to be challenged. No member of ADC has disagreed with the process so far,” he said.