• Party discloses N6.13b war chest, seeks more funds
Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has unveiled its National Campaign Council (NCC) for the 2027 general elections, bringing its key leadership figures under a coordinated campaign structure as preparations for the polls intensify.

The party disclosed that it retained about N6.13 billion from N8.53 billion in reported financial inflows, while appealing to members and supporters to contribute more funds as it prepares for the 2027 general elections.

But the Obi-Kwankwaso Movement faulted the composition of the NDC-NCC, questioning the party’s preparedness for the 2027 general elections and boasting of a stronger grassroots structure.

The NDC-NCC is chaired by the party’s National Leader, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, with presidential candidate Peter Obi as co-chairman. The National Chairman, Senator Cleopas Zuwoghe, has been named vice-chairman, while vice-presidential candidate, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, is co-vice-chairman.

NDC National Secretary, Ikenna Enekweizu, is council secretary, while Ibrahim Abdulkarim is appointed Director-General.

The announcement signals the party’s move to establish a central command structure for coordinating campaign activities, strengthening nationwide mobilisation and communicating its policy agenda to Nigerians ahead of the 2027 elections.

With the campaign council now constituted, attention is expected to turn to the operational task of translating the party’s national leadership into an effective campaign network across the states, local councils, wards and polling units.

For the NDC, the challenge will be to align its campaign leadership, grassroots organisation and policy messaging around a common strategy capable of sustaining engagement with voters throughout the election season.

The party said the council would drive a people-centred and issue-based campaign anchored on its vision of a new, just and prosperous Nigeria.

It called on party members, supporters and well-meaning Nigerians to remain united and focused as it advances its preparations for the 2027 general elections.

The party’s National Treasurer, Dr Peter Onigah, revealed the financial war chest at its third National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja yesterday, where he said the NDC had spent approximately N2.4 billion on its activities.

The disclosure provides a glimpse into the party’s financial position as it builds its structures and prepares for the political contest ahead, with its leadership insisting that accountability and prudent spending would guide the management of its resources.

Onigah said the party had deliberately avoided exhausting the funds available to it, adding that its financial decisions were guided by the experience of its officials, advice from national leaders and the National Working Committee (NWC).

“We have been very prudent. Our chief is made up of technocrats, people who are experienced and people who have different capacities,” he said.

The treasurer assured members that the party would provide a breakdown of its financial transactions as it approaches the end of its first accounting year. He also urged Nigerians to support the party financially, arguing that the NDC needed additional resources to sustain its operations because it had yet to control government at any level.

Although the reported N6.13 billion balance represents a substantial reserve, the party’s leadership said it would require further contributions to meet its future commitments.

Senator Victor Umeh commended the leadership for presenting its financial statement and retaining more than N6 billion from the reported inflows.

Umeh described the balance as seed money for the party’s future activities, but cautioned that it would not be enough to cover all its organisational and electoral needs.

He said the funds had been raised through contributions from party members rather than external sources, while urging supporters to help strengthen the party’s financial base.

DIRECTOR-GENERAL of OK Movement, John Ughulu, said the NDC had waited too long to organise its campaign machinery, warning that political ambition without effective grassroots mobilisation and coordination would not guarantee electoral victory.

In a statement made available to journalists in Abuja yesterday, the politician argued that the movement had done the necessary groundwork while others were only beginning to organise, predicting that some of those appointed to the council might eventually seek its support and mobilisation network.

He said: “The funny part of this list is that 90 per cent of the people on it will still come knocking on the doors of the OK Movement to beg for the very structure they have failed to build themselves.

“With less than three months to the general elections, they are only just announcing their campaign council. What exactly have they been doing all this time? Where is the structure? Where is the strategy? Where is the machinery required to prosecute a serious national election?”

Ughulu and the OK Movement’s state, local government and ward coordinators were reportedly not included in the NDC-NCC.

Dickson had argued that support groups should complement political parties rather than compete with them or operate parallel structures.

Ughulu maintained that the OK Movement would not be reduced to a ceremonial support group, insisting that its strength was in its organisational capacity and commitment to the Obi-Kwankwaso political project.