Court Sets July 7 For ADC Deregistration Appeal Hearing

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has fixed July 7 for the hearing of an appeal challenging the deregistration of five political parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Accord Party.

The appeal, initially scheduled for hearing on June 25, was adjourned to allow parties in the matter to file and exchange their briefs of argument before the substantive hearing.

At Thursday’s proceedings, counsel for the Accord Party, Musibau Adetunbi (SAN), told the three-member panel led by Justice Abubakar Mohammed that the record of appeal and the judgment of the Federal High Court were only obtained on Monday and had since been transmitted to the appellate court.

Adetunbi subsequently sought a short adjournment to enable all parties to file and exchange the necessary court processes.

The application was not opposed by any of the parties, prompting the court to adjourn the matter until 2 p.m. on July 7.

Although the senior advocate requested a three-day adjournment, Justice Mohammed explained that some members of the panel would be away from Abuja next week on official assignments, making July 7 the earliest available date for hearing.

The appeal arose from a judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress, Action Peoples Party, Action Alliance, Accord Party and Zenith Labour Party.

Justice Lifu held that the affected parties failed to meet the constitutional requirements necessary to retain their registration and participate in future elections.

INEC, however, opposed the deregistration order, arguing that the parties met the constitutional threshold for continued registration and had secured elective positions in previous elections. The electoral commission presented certificates of return issued to candidates elected on the platforms of the affected parties as evidence.

The Court of Appeal had earlier, on June 16, stayed the execution of the Federal High Court judgment, restraining INEC from implementing the deregistration pending the determination of the appeal.

In a unanimous ruling, the appellate court faulted Justice Lifu for delivering the judgment despite an earlier directive requiring him to suspend proceedings in the matter, describing the action as a breach of the judicial hierarchy before granting the stay of execution.

The suit was filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators, which argued that the affected political parties failed to satisfy the electoral performance benchmarks prescribed under Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.

According to the group, the parties failed to secure the required electoral performance in the 2023 general election and subsequent by-elections and should therefore be deregistered.

INEC, however, maintained that the parties remain eligible for registration, citing electoral victories recorded by their candidates in various elections across the country.