The OK Movement has admitted that its controversial 59-member presidential campaign council was constituted without due process, reversing its earlier defiance of the New Nigeria Development Congress (NDC) over the structure.

The group, which mobilises support for the NDC’s 2027 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, also accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of exploiting the controversy to portray the opposition party as divided.

Its spokesperson, Emmanuel Idakwo, made the clarification on Thursday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.

Idakwo said the campaign council announced by some individuals claiming to represent the movement was not officially authorised.

“The issue of a campaign council that was allegedly published by some individuals claiming to be members of the OK Movement. But I can assure you that that was not done officially,” he said.

He added that Obi was unaware of the arrangement, insisting that no official action could have been taken in the movement’s name without the presidential candidate’s knowledge.

The admission marks a shift from the movement’s earlier position, when it rejected the NDC leadership’s objection to the council and insisted that it did not require the personal approval of any party official to organise its activities.

The controversy erupted after the OK Movement announced a 59-member presidential campaign council on September 17, saying it would operate independently of the campaign council to be established by the NDC.

The party subsequently disowned the arrangement, warning that the move could undermine its organisational structure ahead of the 2027 general election.

The dispute raised questions about the relationship between the party and support groups campaigning for its presidential ticket.

However, Idakwo insisted that the movement maintained a cordial relationship with the NDC and its National Leader, Seriake Dickson.

He argued that statements and activities of unauthorised individuals were often wrongly attributed to the movement, creating the impression of a rift between the support group and the party leadership.

“There is no official leadership of either the Obidient Movement, the Kwankwasiya, the OK Movement that has ever come up to say that they are against the NDC structure or the party leadership,” he said.

Turning his criticism towards the ruling party, Idakwo alleged that the APC was amplifying the disagreement to damage the NDC’s credibility and weaken its growing support base.

He claimed that minor disagreements were being magnified online to create the impression that Obi’s political platform was already battling internal divisions.

The APC had not responded to the allegation as of the time of filing this report.

When contacted by Premium Times for comments, APC National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka requested that questions be sent to him by text message. He had yet to respond at the time of the report.

The NDC later authorised Obi and Kwankwaso to nominate their preferred leaders for the party’s forthcoming presidential campaign council, in a move aimed at resolving the dispute over the campaign structure.

The latest clarification by the OK Movement appears to ease the immediate tension, although questions remain about how support groups will coordinate their activities with the party’s official campaign machinery ahead of the 2027 election.