Appeal Court Suspends Judgment Deregistering ADC, Four Other Parties

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has halted the implementation of a Federal High Court judgment that directed the Independent National Electoral Commission to deregister the African Democratic Congress and four other political parties.

The decision was delivered on Tuesday by a three-member panel of the appellate court led by Justice A. B. Mohammed. The court ruled that the judgment would not be enforced until appeals filed by the affected parties are determined.

In its decision, the appellate court strongly criticised the conduct of Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, stating that he proceeded with the judgment despite an existing order issued by the Court of Appeal on May 22. According to the panel, the lower court failed to comply with a directive that had suspended further action in the case.

The appellate court held that obedience to court orders is necessary for the proper administration of justice and maintained that lower courts are expected to respect decisions made by superior courts. The panel stated that it had a responsibility to protect the judicial process and ensure compliance with its directives.

As a result, the court granted the request seeking a stay of execution and suspended the enforcement of the judgment pending the outcome of the appeal.

During the proceedings, INEC informed the court that it was surprised by the delivery of the judgment. Counsel to the commission said INEC only became aware of the ruling through media reports and had not received official notice before it was delivered.

The commission also told the court that it was aware of the earlier order issued by the Court of Appeal and therefore supported the request by the affected political parties to suspend the judgment. INEC further aligned itself with the appeals filed against the ruling.

Lawyers representing the affected parties argued that the Federal High Court should not have delivered the judgment while the appellate court’s order remained in force. Counsel to the African Democratic Congress also informed the court that the party received information about the judgment through a WhatsApp message from the trial court.

The parties urged the Court of Appeal to intervene immediately, arguing that failure to do so could create legal uncertainty and affect upcoming electoral activities, including by-elections scheduled in several states.

The controversy began after Justice Lifu ruled that the ADC, Action Peoples Party, Action Alliance, Accord Party and Zenith Labour Party no longer met the constitutional conditions required to remain registered political parties.

The Federal High Court subsequently directed INEC to stop recognising the parties, barred them from participating in future elections, and prohibited them from presenting themselves as registered political parties in Nigeria.

With the latest ruling of the Court of Appeal, the deregistration order has been put on hold. The five political parties will continue to retain their registered status until the appellate court reaches a final decision on the appeals challenging the judgment.