A leadership dispute disrupted the flag-off of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) e-registration exercise in Enugu State on Thursday, throwing the event into disarray and exposing deep-seated divisions within the party.

The exercise, scheduled to hold at Admiral Suites in Independence Layout, was abruptly halted after a faction identifying itself as founding members challenged the authority of the committee constituted to supervise the registration and revalidation process.

Tension flared when the chairman of the registration committee, Chukwuemeka Okereke, moved to commence proceedings. The protesting group accused him of sidelining the state leadership under Stella Chukwuma, arguing that the registration should be overseen by founding members rather than a committee allegedly imposed by the national leadership.

What began as a heated exchange quickly degenerated into chaos. The aggrieved members chanted solidarity songs in support of Chukwuma and physically blocked Okereke from addressing participants. In the ensuing commotion, Okereke was reportedly rough-handled and beaten by some angry party members, creating panic at the venue. The situation escalated to the point that policemen had to intervene and whisk him out of the premises to safety.

The development forced party leaders to step in to prevent further escalation, and the exercise was subsequently suspended.

At the height of the standoff, the hotel gates were reportedly locked amid concerns that unauthorised persons might attempt to access sensitive party materials. Security was tightened, with vehicles subjected to thorough checks before entry.

Sources disclosed that registration materials were yet to arrive in Enugu, a development that reportedly fuelled mistrust and intensified the rivalry between the factions.

The disruption exposed lingering leadership tensions within the ADC in Enugu State, casting doubt over the seamless implementation of subsequent party activities.

Speaking after the tense meeting, ADC chieftain David Williams condemned the disruption, describing those involved as “miscreants” allegedly seeking to derail the party’s progress in the state.

“In as much as there was some attempt by some miscreants to truncate the efforts being made by our super chairman, at the end of the day we came out victorious,” Williams said.

He declined to name those responsible but vowed that the party would resist any plot to hijack its structure in Enugu.

“One message we have for them is that ADC is here to stay and we are not going to allow anybody to use proxies to hijack this party. They want to introduce money politics into the party, but we the faithful will resist it,” he added.

Also speaking, former senator representing Enugu East, Gilbert Nnaji, admitted that internal disagreements existed but expressed confidence that the matter would be amicably resolved.

According to him, the dispute centred on the delineation of responsibilities between the registration committee and the state leadership.

“There is a little misunderstanding somewhere between the chairman of the registration exercise and the state chairman. As stakeholders, we are going to resolve the issue to make sure the registration goes on smoothly,” he said.

Nnaji explained that while the committee maintained it had a mandate to establish structures across local government areas, the state leadership insisted that registration materials should be handed over directly to it for coordination at the ward level.

He assured party members that further consultations would be held to harmonise both positions, noting that the party had a two-week deadline to conclude the nationwide registration exercise.

Despite the disruption, party leaders maintained that the e-registration had already commenced online, while reconciliation efforts continued to avert a full-scale leadership crisis in the Enugu chapter of the party. (The Sun)