The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has heard and reserved judgment in appeals seeking to set aside the Federal High Court judgment that ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to deregister the African Democratic Congress, ADC, and four other political parties.
A three-member panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Abba Mohammed, reserved the matter for judgment on Tuesday after all parties adopted their briefs of argument.
Apart from the ADC, the other political parties challenging the Federal High Court judgment are the Action Peoples Party, APP; Action Alliance, AA; Accord Party; and the Zenith Labour Party, ZLP.
The appellate court said a date for judgment would be communicated to the parties.
The latest proceedings followed a June 15 judgment of the Federal High Court in Abuja, delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, directing INEC to deregister the five political parties on the ground that they allegedly failed to meet the constitutional requirements for continued existence and participation in future elections.
The trial court also barred INEC from according further recognition to the affected parties, accepting nominations of candidates from them, or giving effect to their activities for the purpose of participating in the 2027 general elections.
Justice Lifu further ordered the affected parties to stop parading themselves as registered political parties in Nigeria after finding merit in the suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators, NFFL.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026, asked the court to determine whether INEC had a constitutional obligation to remove political parties that failed to meet the electoral performance thresholds set out under Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
The plaintiffs argued that the parties had persistently failed to meet the benchmarks required to retain registration, including winning at least 25 per cent of votes in a state during a presidential election or securing at least one elective seat at the national, state or local government level.
They maintained that the ADC and the four other parties performed poorly in the 2023 general elections and subsequent by-elections conducted by INEC, and therefore no longer met the minimum constitutional threshold for continued recognition.
The litigants also argued that the continued existence of the parties as registered political parties undermined the integrity of the electoral system.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, who was also listed as a defendant in the matter, supported the plaintiffs’ position before the trial court.
The AGF argued that the continued recognition of the affected parties violated provisions of the 1999 Constitution and undermined electoral integrity.
However, dissatisfied with the judgment, the affected parties and INEC approached the Court of Appeal, urging it to set aside the decision.
TNL had earlier reported that the Federal High Court delivered the judgment despite an earlier Court of Appeal stay order secured by Accord Party, restraining further proceedings in the matter pending the determination of an appeal.
The Court of Appeal later ordered a stay of execution of Justice Lifu’s judgment and sharply criticised the trial judge for proceeding with judgment despite the appellate court’s earlier directive.
The appellate panel reportedly described Justice Lifu’s action as “the highest form of judicial impertinence,” while stressing that the Supreme Court had previously held that a judge who acts in such a manner is unfit for the bench because such conduct amounts to judicial rascality.
The matter had suffered previous adjournments before Tuesday’s hearing. The Court of Appeal had earlier shifted the substantive appeal to allow parties file and exchange briefs, before eventually hearing the matter and reserving judgment.
With judgment now reserved, the legal status of the affected parties will remain a major issue ahead of the 2027 general elections, especially as INEC and the parties insist that the trial court’s decision should be set aside.
The Court of Appeal’s eventual decision is expected to determine whether the Federal High Court judgment directing INEC to deregister the ADC, APP, AA, Accord Party and ZLP will stand or be nullified.
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