Appeal Court Reverses Order Deregistering ADC, Four Other Political Parties

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has overturned a Federal High Court judgment that ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties, restoring their legal status ahead of the 2027 general elections.

In a unanimous ruling delivered by a three-member panel, the appellate court declared the lower court’s June 15 judgment a nullity, holding that the suit upon which the decision was based was fundamentally defective and lacked legal standing.

The court found that the Federal High Court wrongly assumed jurisdiction over a case instituted by the National Forum of Former Legislators (NFFL), which it described as a non-juristic entity incapable of filing a valid lawsuit. According to the appellate court, there was no competent suit before the trial court to justify the sweeping orders issued against the affected political parties.

Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Abba Mohammed held that the trial court also failed to properly assess crucial evidence presented before it, including documents showing that the parties had previously won elective positions, a key factor in determining their eligibility to remain registered.

The Court of Appeal further faulted the Federal High Court for proceeding with the matter despite an earlier directive from the appellate court ordering a stay of proceedings pending the determination of an appeal.

As a result, the appellate court allowed the separate appeals filed by the affected parties, reaffirmed their status as legally registered political organisations, and awarded costs against the NFFL, which initiated the suit.

The political parties whose registrations were restored are the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).

The latest decision follows an earlier order issued by the Court of Appeal on June 16, which suspended the execution of the Federal High Court judgment. During the proceedings, the appellate panel strongly criticised Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, for delivering judgment despite an order made on May 22 directing him to halt proceedings until the appeal was resolved.

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The panel described the judge’s conduct as “a form of judicial impertinence,” noting that the Supreme Court had previously condemned similar actions, describing them as judicial rascality capable of undermining confidence in the judiciary.

The Federal High Court had earlier ruled that the five political parties should be deregistered for allegedly failing to satisfy constitutional requirements under Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

In addition to ordering their deregistration, the court directed INEC to stop recognising the parties, reject their candidate nominations, and refrain from acknowledging any of their activities in relation to the 2027 elections. The parties were also prohibited from presenting themselves as registered political organisations.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026, was filed by the NFFL, which argued that the parties failed to meet constitutional benchmarks, including securing at least 25 per cent of votes in a state during a presidential election or winning elective positions at the federal, state, or local government levels. The group maintained that the parties performed poorly in the 2023 general elections and subsequent by-elections.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), backed the plaintiffs’ position, arguing that retaining the parties on the electoral register was inconsistent with constitutional provisions and detrimental to electoral integrity.

However, all the defendants, including INEC, challenged the judgment. With the Court of Appeal’s ruling, the controversial decision has now been completely nullified, allowing the five political parties to continue operating as duly registered entities under Nigeria’s electoral framework.