Deregistration: Appeal Court Defers ADC, others case Hearing Till July 14

The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Tuesday postponed the hearing of appeals challenging the judgment that directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties. The court fixed July 14, 2026, for the hearing after some parties failed to file and exchange the required court documents before the sitting.

The three-member panel, led by Justice Abba Mohammed, granted the adjournment after some respondents informed the court that they had only just received fresh court processes and needed time to prepare and file their responses. The panel agreed to allow all parties complete the necessary filings before the appeals proceed.

The appeals were filed by the ADC, Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), all seeking to overturn the Federal High Court judgment that ordered their deregistration.

The appellate court had earlier, on June 25, completed preliminary proceedings that allowed all parties to identify and regularise the documents already before the court. Before that, on June 16, the same court suspended the execution of the Federal High Court judgment pending the determination of the appeals.

While granting the stay of execution, the Appeal Court criticised the trial judge, Justice Peter Lifu, for delivering judgment despite an earlier order directing him to suspend proceedings until the appeal against the case was decided. The appellate court held that the trial judge failed to follow the judicial process by continuing with the matter after being notified of the stay order.

The Federal High Court had ruled that INEC should remove the ADC and the four other parties from its register, holding that they no longer met the constitutional conditions required for political parties to remain registered. The court also restrained INEC from recognising the affected parties, accepting candidates nominated by them or allowing them to participate in preparations for the 2027 general elections.

The judgment followed a suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators, which argued that the affected parties had failed to satisfy the electoral performance requirements contained in the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act 2022 and INEC regulations.

According to the plaintiffs, the parties did not achieve the required election results during the 2023 general election and subsequent by-elections to justify retaining their registration.

The former lawmakers maintained that the parties failed to secure the constitutional threshold of electoral support, including winning at least 25 per cent of votes in a state during a presidential election or obtaining elective positions at the federal, state or local government levels.

The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, who is also a party in the case, supported the position of the plaintiffs. He argued that allowing the affected parties to remain registered would be inconsistent with constitutional provisions and would amount to INEC neglecting its legal responsibilities.

However, the ADC, the four other political parties and INEC have all appealed the Federal High Court decision, asking the Court of Appeal to overturn the judgment. The appellate court is now expected to begin hearing the substantive appeals on July 14 after all pending court processes have been completed.