A fresh crisis has erupted in the Obi-Kwankwaso political camp following a bitter disagreement between the Nigeria Democratic Congress and the Obi-Kwankwaso Movement over a 59-member Presidential Campaign Council.
The row began after the movement unveiled the council on Thursday to mobilise support for NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
But the NDC quickly disowned the structure, insisting that it was not authorised by the party and warning that no individual or support group could constitute a campaign structure in the party’s name without approval from its National Working Committee.
The party’s National Chairman, Senator Moses Cleopas, said the council should be disregarded, stressing that only the appropriate party organs had the authority to create and announce such a structure.
Cleopas also warned against what the party described as attempts by individuals or support groups to operate in the name of the NDC without authorisation.
The development has now triggered a fresh confrontation, with the OK Movement accusing the party chairman of misunderstanding its status and attempting to undermine its independence.
In a statement on Sunday, the movement’s National Secretary, Saadatu Sani, demanded an immediate apology from Cleopas and called for the withdrawal of statements it considered defamatory.
Sani also warned that the movement would not be intimidated or forced to surrender its organisational independence.
She urged the NDC chairman to familiarise himself with the party’s constitution before making assertions about the rights and responsibilities of the movement.
The OK Movement insisted that although it was backing Obi and Kwankwaso, it remained an independent political organisation with its own leadership, structure and internal processes.
Sani said the movement would campaign for the NDC presidential and vice-presidential candidates, as well as other NDC candidates it resolved to support across the country.
However, she stressed that such support did not make the movement a subordinate structure of the party.
The group further claimed to have developed a nationwide grassroots network with an internal database of about 2.5 million registered members and coordinators.
It also rejected suggestions that it was merely a temporary support group created for the 2027 elections, saying it had a long-term political vision.
The dispute has also spilled into the controversy surrounding the movement’s Director-General, John Ughulu, who the NDC had criticised over his alleged conduct during the Lagos State primary.
The OK Movement rejected the allegations concerning Ughulu and said it would not engage in personal attacks or defamatory exchanges.
Instead, Sani said the movement would continue to defend its members whenever their integrity was questioned.
The latest clash has opened a new fault line within the wider Obi-Kwankwaso political camp, with the NDC insisting on its authority over party structures while the OK Movement maintains that its decision to support the ticket does not place it under the party’s control.
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