The founder and pioneer national chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Chief Ralph Nwosu, said Bala Nafiu Gombe, a former deputy national chairman of the party, frequently begged for transport fare to attend meetings in Abuja.
In an interview on Wednesday with Lagos Talks, a radio station, Nwosu claimed that Mr Gombe began living in an expensive hotel and moving around with security operatives after taking the leadership dispute to court in September.
“This Bala, he went to court in September; we concluded the process in July, and from that September, he started living in one of the biggest hotels; he started moving around with security. He got bulletproof SUVs, more than three, moving with security,” he said.
When asked whether Bala may have acquired the vehicles because he feared for his safety, Nwosu said: “Yeah, and then you can buy an SUV that is costing over N500 million. And so on?”
Nwosu said Bala previously depended on him and other party members for bus fare whenever he was invited to meetings in Abuja.
“Before then, when I invite Bala for a meeting in Abuja, he cannot come until I send him either N50,000 to take a bus to come for a meeting, and so on. And he would not leave until we are able to also scratch out money to pay for his transport,” he said.
He also alleged that President Bola Tinubu’s administration is interested in the party’s internal crisis, claiming that the leadership dispute began after Bala approached the court.
“We have tapes where the chief of staff to the president was telling some people to stay in ADC and destroy it,” he said.
He maintained that the party had concluded its internal leadership process in July, before Bala filed his court case in September.
He alleged that the Tinubu administration is prepared to use financial inducements to weaken opposition figures and parties.
“As far as the incumbent government is concerned, their philosophy is: if you give them N1 billion and they say no, you can top it to N10 billion until they are able to collapse,” he said.
Nwosu said the alleged attempts had failed to break his resolve, adding that the government’s actions were responsible for the political pressure surrounding the party.
“And they were not able to do it with this man — Ralph Okey Nwosu, and that is what is causing their pain and all they are doing. But I can assure you and all Nigerians, this will not succeed,” he said.
