ADC Files Suit Against Kingibe Over Party Membership Claim

The African Democratic Congress in the Federal Capital Territory has taken legal action at the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop Senator Ireti Kingibe from presenting herself as a member of the party while her suspension remains in place.

The suit was filed shortly after the Wuse Ward Executive Committee announced the senator’s indefinite suspension from the party.

The case was brought before the court by the chairman of the ADC in Wuse Ward, Okezuo Godfrey Kanayo, and the ward secretary, Isaiah Ojonugwa Samuel.

They filed the suit on behalf of the ward leadership and asked the court to determine whether the ward committee has the authority to discipline members within its area, including suspending them from the party.

Through their lawyer, Maxwell Opara, the plaintiffs requested the court to confirm that the decision taken by the Wuse Ward Executive Committee to suspend Kingibe remains valid. They also asked the court to declare that the senator cannot present herself as a member of the African Democratic Congress while the suspension is still in force.

In addition, the plaintiffs urged the court to stop the party’s National Working Committee from recognising Kingibe as a member of the party at any level during the period of her suspension. The suit also asked the court to affirm that the ward leadership acted within its powers when it decided to take disciplinary action against the senator.

The legal action follows the announcement made by the ward committee about 48 hours earlier, in which the party leaders in the area declared that Kingibe had been placed on indefinite suspension. The ward officials maintained that the disciplinary action was taken in line with the party’s internal rules.

The suit was filed under case number FHC/ABJ/CS/539/2026. In the documents submitted to the court, the plaintiffs relied on provisions of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, the constitution of the African Democratic Congress and the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules of 2019. They also asked the court to apply its authority to interpret and enforce the internal rules of political parties.

As of the time the case was filed, the matter had not yet been assigned to a judge for hearing. The development has added to the ongoing political discussions surrounding the status of the senator within the party and the internal disagreements within the ADC in the Federal Capital Territory.