Favour Raphael
The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday ordered the deregistration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties for failing to meet constitutional requirements governing political party registration in Nigeria.
Justice Peter Lifu, in his judgment, directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the affected parties for failing to meet the electoral performance threshold required under the law.
The affected parties are the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord (A), Action Alliance (AA), Action Peoples Party (APP), and the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
The court also ordered INEC not to allow the parties to participate in future elections, including the 2027 general elections, having failed to meet the required constitutional benchmarks.
The suit was filed by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators in case number FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026, with the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) joined as a party, while INEC was listed as the 1st defendant.
The plaintiffs argued that the affected political parties failed to meet constitutional requirements relating to electoral spread and performance, particularly the minimum threshold of votes required in elections.
They insisted that political parties must meet stipulated electoral benchmarks, including securing at least 25 per cent of votes in prescribed elections, to remain validly registered.
According to the plaintiffs, the defendants failed to effectively challenge the claims before the court.
Justice Lifu agreed with the arguments and dismissed preliminary objections raised by the defendants before delivering his ruling in favour of the plaintiffs.
INEC is yet to issue an official response or indicate whether it will comply with the judgment or pursue an appeal.
