Breaking: SDP Suspends National Chairman, Others, Appoints Replacement

• The Social Democratic Party has suspended its party’s chairman, Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam, national auditor, Nze Nnadi Clarkson and the national youth leader, Uchechukwu Chukwuma
• The spokesperson of the party, Araba Rufus Aiyenigba, announced their suspension in a statement issued on Tuesday
• The SDP has appointed Sadiq Abubakar as the acting national chairman in line with the party’s constitution

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

In a significant twist of events, on Tuesday, June 24, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) suspended its national chairman, Shehu Gabam, over alleged financial misconduct and misappropriation of party funds.

Alleged fraud: SDP suspends chairman, 2 others

The party also suspended its national auditor, Nnadi Clarkson, and national youth leader, Chukwuma Uchechukwu.

As reported by The Punch, the national publicity secretary, Araba Aiyenigba, confirmed this in a statement issued on Tuesday.

“The suspended officials were linked to a series of unauthorised financial transactions, personal enrichment schemes, and diversion of funds without NWC approval,” the statement said.

According to Aiyenigba, Gabam had submitted an unauthorised financial statement to INEC and published a summary in newspapers, prompting the party to alert law enforcement agencies.

“This action reinforces our zero-tolerance stance on corruption,” he added.

For a thorough investigation, the SDP also set up an interim panel to audit all financial records and recommend appropriate disciplinary or legal steps.

Gabam replaced: SDP appoints new chairman in acting capacity

The deputy national chairman (North), Sadiq Abubakar, has been appointed acting national chairman in line with the party’s constitution.

The party claims the mismanaged funds run into hundreds of millions of naira, including proceeds from 2023 nomination form sales and donations.

INEC and relevant agencies have been officially notified of the suspension, which takes immediate effect, according to the statement.

Why Atiku dropped SDP, adopted ADA

In another development, Legit.ng reported that the National Coordinator of the Citizens Coalition, Kelly Agaba, commended Atiku Abubakar's coalition over the adoption of the All Democratic Alliance (ADA).

Agaba explained the reason Atiku did not adopt the SDP, where Nasir El-Rufai decamped to.

During an exclusive chat with Legit.ng, Agaba said ADA is the new hope for Nigeria to unseat President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

Read more about SDP here:

• Honourable Usman joins the Social Democratic Party SDP

SDP distances party from El-Rufai’s opposition coalition push

Legit.ng earlier reported that Adewole Adebayo, former presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), has publicly refuted claims that ex-Kaduna state governor, Nasir El-Rufai, is representing the party in ongoing opposition coalition discussions ahead of the 2027 general elections.

El-Rufai, who parted ways with the All Progressives Congress (APC) earlier this year following a reported fallout with President Bola Tinubu, joined the SDP in March.

Despite his growing involvement in mobilizing political figures for a possible coalition, the SDP has made it clear that El-Rufai is not acting on its behalf.

Source: Legit.ng