NDC members clash over candidate removal issue

A new fight has broken out in the Nigeria Democratic Congress. Morris Monye, a close ally of Peter Obi, and the party’s spokesperson, Theo Agada, are arguing publicly over Monye’s alleged removal as the party’s House of Representatives candidate for Delta State.

The argument started after Monye made several posts over the weekend. He said that key politicians who recently moved from the All Progressives Congress influenced the decision to replace him as the candidate for Delta North.

On Saturday, Monye said reports of his replacement came out shortly after these politicians joined the party. The reason given was that he had lost the primary election.

Monye claimed he immediately informed Obi about what was happening. He said the party's presidential candidate was worried and advised him not to let this issue distract from the party's presidential goals.

“When news of this substitution started filtering in due to entrants of newly defected APC strongmen in Delta State, I had to run to H.E. Peter Obi late at night to brief him on what was going on.

“The narrative from the new entrants was that I lost the primaries to justify the substitution. The returning officer wrote a result to favour the said person. I just assumed the right thing was done.

“After much deliberation on the way forward and fatherly counsel from PO in the presence of Dr. Tanko, Dr. Mo, Mama Pee, Peter Akah, Esther, Ibrahim and others, I decided not to pursue my own election matter any longer out of respect for our Principal, H.E. Peter Obi, and the journey ahead,” Monye wrote.

Monye said he is not desperate for political power but is committed to seeing Obi succeed as president.

“I am not desperate to answer ‘Honourable’ but I’m desperate to see a Nigeria that works for me, you and all our loved ones. Nigeria must work in my lifetime.”

On Sunday, Monye added that the new entrants from the APC were getting favored over long-time party members.

He dismissed claims that the newcomers had more money than the original Obidients. He insisted he had put a lot of effort into building the NDC in his area.

“I’ve made significant contributions to the NDC on my own volition to ensure the party is great in my constituency. The Delta State NDC Secretary is aware of these contributions. Deacon Ken Pela is aware of these contributions. They are even with receipts.

“During screening they kept asking me if I was running for Senate because no one else did the things I did. I replied it’s because I want the party of PO to be big in my area.

“I also donated a secretariat to the party in my constituency. You can’t join the party a few days to the primaries and, because of the reputation of being in APC, say you have a bigger war chest. The whole shenanigans happened because the godfather brought his boys from APC to fill in roles,” he alleged.

Agada responded on Sunday. He denied that the national leadership had anything to do with Monye’s alleged removal. He said candidate selection is done at the state level.

“On Morris Monye, the national leadership of the Nigeria Democratic Congress has no hand in the removal of his name from the list.

“Whatever issue he is having, he should take it up with his local leaders at the grassroots level. The national leadership devolved power to local stakeholders, and they are the ones calling the shots.

“Morris knows the people responsible for his ordeal, but he would not want to call them out for fear of being cancelled.

“The governorship candidate, who happens to be a core Obidient, Prof. Pat Utomi, and Victor Ochei are the local leaders who decide who gets what. It is what the state leaders submit to the national leadership that is uploaded on the INEC portal,” Agada stated.

Agada also rejected Monye’s claim that money influenced the primary results.

“Is it because of his war chest that Peter for Nigeria, who won the primary and is flying the party’s flag in Cross River, got the ticket?

“If the NDC was after money or for moneybags, it could have easily asked the thousands of people who indicated interest in contesting on the party’s platform to buy both the Expression of Interest form and the nomination form, as many other parties did.

“But the party decided to sell only the Expression of Interest form to aspirants. It is only successful aspirants who won primaries that are paying for the nomination form. No political party did this. Many of you are so loud and ignorant,” he wrote.

Agada further accused critics of spreading false stories about the party and its leaders. He suggested that the full details of the Delta issue have not yet come to light.

“Over the past few days, I have seen so many false narratives making the rounds in the media against the party and the national leader.

“If I were to give a detailed account of what happened, this platform would burn,” he added.

The argument heated up on Monday after Monye said Agada is not fit to be the party’s spokesperson.

“It is unfortunate that Theo Agada does not know his job as Spokesperson for the NDC Party. It’s a truly unfortunate realization for me,” Monye wrote on his X handle.