Zenith Labour Party Faults Deregistration Suit

The leadership of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) has objected to the ongoing legal move to deregister it.

The party described the suit as a politically motivated attack designed to shrink Nigeria’s democratic space.

At a press conference at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja yesterday, its national chairman, Chief  Dan Nwanyanwu, said the party would employ all legal and political means to resist the deregistration suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators (NFFL).

“The only thing required in the constitution is to win one councillorship seat. Zenith Labour Party won 15 local governments and 176 councillors.

“We are a party with elected officials across the country, and any claim that we have failed to meet the constitutional requirements for registration is false and malicious.

“We have met all the requirements for registration. We have functional secretariats, a valid membership register, and we have participated in elections and won.”Nwanyanwu declared.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2025, is seeking an order to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister several political parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord Party (AP), Action Alliance (AA), Action Peoples Party (APP), and the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).

The former lawmakers backing the suit argue that the affected parties have failed to meet the constitutional threshold for securing at least 25 per cent of votes in a state during a presidential election or winning any elective seats.

The attorney-general of the federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), has also backed the suit, arguing that “non-performing parties clutter ballots and drain public funds.

Dismissing the arguments, Nwanyanwu said,”The plaintiffs cannot stand before a court of law and claim we have no representation when they know that to be false.”

The chairman further accused the Attorney General and Minister of Justice,Lateef Fagbemi Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), of failing to do due diligence,thereby preventing politicians whose parties are in crisis from joining the ZLP.

“I’m calling on Nigerians who want to run under ZLP to come and pick their forms,we don’t have any case anywhere we are a peaceful party. If I may borrow from the words of Seriake Dickson,there is no status quo antebellum here.We are free.” Nwanyanwu stated