Reno Omokri Criticises ADC Leadership Struggle Between David Mark and Nafiu Bala
Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has criticised the ongoing leadership tussle within the African Democratic Congress (ADC), highlighting the vast age gap between David Mark and Nafiu Bala.
Tribune Online reports that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had announced plans to remove the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), led by Mark, from its portal following a Court of Appeal ruling.
In a post on X on Tuesday, Omokri noted that Mark, who turns 78 on April 8, 2026, began his political career decades before Bala was born. He recalled that Mark served as military governor of Niger State in 1984 and later as communications minister in 1987—years before Bala’s birth.
Omokri described it as inappropriate for a politician of Mark’s age and experience to contest a leadership position against someone much younger. Bala, reportedly 35, belongs to a generation far removed from Mark’s early political journey.
Tracing Mark’s political history back to 1976, Omokri said he was first appointed chairman of the Abandoned Properties Implementation Committee in the former Eastern Nigeria under the Olusegun Obasanjo administration.
He argued that the ADC’s current crisis reflects deeper structural problems, noting that senior party members, who should act as neutral arbiters in internal conflicts, are themselves involved in the power struggle. According to Omokri, this has weakened the party’s moral and institutional framework.
He wrote, “David Mark will be 78 years old tomorrow, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. Nafiu Bala is said to be 35 years old. Nafiu Bala was not yet born 42 years ago when David Mark was appointed military Governor of Niger State in 1984. Nafiu had not even been conceived when David Mark was made Communications Minister in 1987.
“Why would God bless anyone to reach 78, and at that stage of life be dragging a position with someone almost the same age as your first grandchild? David Mark got his first political appointment in 1976, fifty years ago, when Nafiu Bala’s mother was still a child. Fast forward to 2026, and he is fighting her child over a chairmanship position? Yoruba say o mass o!
“The problem with the ADC is that the elders, who should manage conflict resolution, are the very people struggling for power. There is no neutral person with sufficient authority to intervene between David Mark and Nafiu Bala because the elders themselves are vying for relevance. This has led to the breakdown of the party’s moral fabric, for which they are to blame—not the Federal Government, the Presidency, or INEC.”
