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Appeal Court reserves judgment on appeals against deregistration of ADC, 4 others
🇳🇬 Nigeria /Elections & Politics

Appeal Court reserves judgment on appeals against deregistration of ADC, 4 others

From Vanguard · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Nigeria's Court of Appeal heard arguments on appeals against the deregistration of five political parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
  • The court had previously issued a stay of execution on a lower court's order to deregister the parties, criticizing the judge for disregarding judicial hierarchy.
  • The deregistration stemmed from the parties' alleged failure to meet constitutional requirements for continued existence and participation in elections.

Nigeria's Court of Appeal has reserved judgment on appeals challenging the deregistration of five political parties, including the prominent African Democratic Congress (ADC). The appellate court, led by Justice Abba Mohammed, heard the parties' arguments on Tuesday.

This development follows a previous ruling on June 16, where the Court of Appeal ordered a stay of execution on a Federal High Court judgment that mandated the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the parties. The appellate court had sharply criticized the trial judge, Justice Peter Lifu, for flouting a direct order to halt proceedings, labeling his actions as "judicial impertinence" and "judicial rascality."

a form of judicial impertinence

— Court of AppealThe appellate court described the trial judge's actions of flouting a stay of proceedings order.

The original High Court judgment had ordered INEC to deregister the ADC, Action Peoples Party, Action Alliance, Accord Party, and Zenith Labour Party. The court stated they failed to meet constitutional requirements, such as winning at least 25% of votes in a state during a presidential election or securing any elective seat at national, state, or local government levels. The ruling also barred INEC from recognizing these parties or accepting nominations from them for future elections, including the 2027 general elections.

is unfit for the bench, as the conduct amounts to judicial rascality

— Court of AppealThe appellate court commented on the trial judge's behavior in disregarding judicial hierarchy.
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Originally published by Vanguard. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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