morganable politics/elections
The judgment followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, instituted by Gombe, who challenged the process through which Mark and other members of the caretaker committee assumed control of the party.
KaNo—
The presidential ambition of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2027 general elections has suffered a major setback following a Federal High Court judgment nullifying the National Working Committee of the African Democratic Congress led by former Senate President, David Mark.
The judgment, delivered on Thursday by Justice Peter Lifu in Abuja, also invalidated the emergence of former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, as the party’s National Secretary, alongside other appointments and decisions taken by the Mark-led leadership.
The court further nullified the process that produced Atiku as the ADC presidential candidate for the 2027 elections and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission not to recognise or act on decisions taken at the party’s 99th National Executive Committee meeting held on July 27, 2025.
The ruling has thrown the opposition party’s preparations for the 2027 elections into uncertainty, particularly following Atiku’s emergence as its presidential candidate and his selection of former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as his running mate.
While Atiku vowed to challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal, the faction led by former ADC Deputy National Chairman (North-East), Nafiu Bala Gombe, described the ruling as a victory and insisted that the Mark-led leadership had no valid candidates for the forthcoming elections.
The judgment followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, instituted by Gombe, who challenged the process through which Mark and other members of the caretaker committee assumed control of the party.
Gombe argued that following the resignation of the former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally entitled to assume the party’s leadership.
He consequently asked the court to invalidate decisions taken by the Mark-led leadership and restrain Mark and Aregbesola from parading themselves as National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively.
The ADC, INEC, Mark, Aregbesola and Nwosu were listed as defendants in the suit.
In his judgment, Justice Lifu upheld Gombe’s case, holding that the emergence of the Mark-led leadership violated the ADC constitution, relevant provisions of the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.
The court also directed INEC not to recognise decisions taken at the party’s 99th NEC meeting of July 27, 2025.
Speaking with journalists after the judgment, Gombe’s counsel, Lukman Fagbemi (SAN), said the court had nullified all actions taken by the Mark-led leadership since July 2025.
He said the judgment established that the leadership did not emerge through constitutionally recognised procedures and breached relevant provisions of the party’s constitution, the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.
“All the actions taken by the ADC as a party since July 27 to date stand annulled,” Fagbemi said.
Another counsel to the plaintiff, Luka Musa Haruna (SAN), said the judgment followed the Supreme Court’s directive that the substantive issues in the leadership dispute be determined by the Federal High Court.
According to him, the ruling effectively left the ADC without candidates for the 2027 elections, covering the presidential, governorship, Senate and House of Representatives elections.
“As it stands today, the ADC has no candidate from the presidential level to the House of Representatives, governorship, Senate and all other elective positions for the 2027 election,” Haruna said.
He added that candidates from Gombe’s faction would be recognised under the judgment.
However, Atiku rejected the ruling, accusing the ruling All Progressives Congress of attempting to weaken the opposition and frustrate his presidential ambition ahead of the 2027 elections.
In a statement issued by the Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, the former Vice-President described the timing of the judgment as suspicious.
He noted that the ruling came barely a day after a large crowd welcomed him to Sokoto State during his campaign launch.
“The timing of this judgment is no coincidence. It is part of a strategy to weaken my support in the North and frustrate a campaign whose message is resonating across the country,” he said.
Atiku, however, maintained that the APC had miscalculated by assuming that his political support was restricted to Northern Nigeria.
“What we saw in Sokoto, what we will see in Kebbi and across the country, is the strength of a national movement. My roots are in Northern Nigeria, but my candidacy belongs to all Nigerians,” he said.
He added that the economic challenges confronting Nigerians were not limited to any particular region, insisting that his presidential ambition enjoyed support across the country.
The former Vice-President also questioned the legal basis of Thursday’s judgment, citing an earlier ruling by Justice Musa Liman of the Federal High Court, Abuja, in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1637/2025, which dismissed a challenge to the Mark-led leadership.
According to Atiku, the earlier court had upheld objections bordering on jurisdiction, legal standing and failure to exhaust internal party remedies, while resolving the substantive issues in favour of the defendants.
“Why, after that judgment, was another case filed to reopen the same dispute? This is a calculated attempt to circumvent a subsisting judgment. We will challenge this judicial manoeuvre at the Court of Appeal,” he said.
However, the earlier suit was instituted by a member of the House of Representatives, Leke Abejide, and was separate from the case filed by Gombe that produced Thursday’s judgment.
Despite the legal setback, Atiku, who was in Kebbi State on Thursday for his campaign rally, vowed to continue his presidential bid.
He pledged to restore fuel subsidy and tackle insecurity if elected President in 2027, urging his supporters not to be discouraged by the court ruling.
Atiku also called on party members to remain calm and law-abiding, maintaining that the judgment would not stop his campaign or determination to contest the presidential election.
Meanwhile, Gombe ruled out immediate reconciliation with the Mark-led faction, insisting that those seeking to participate in the party’s affairs must first comply with its membership requirements.
He asked Mark, Atiku and other members of the rival faction to register as ADC members in their respective wards before seeking positions or involvement in the party’s activities.
The ruling has also attracted reactions from opposition parties and political figures, who warned that the development could undermine democratic competition and further shrink Nigeria’s political space ahead of the 2027 elections.
They expressed concerns that prolonged leadership disputes and court interventions could weaken opposition parties and limit the choices available to voters.
However, the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, defended the judgment, blaming the Mark-led faction for the crisis and arguing that the legal consequences resulted from the actions of those who assumed control of the party.
The ADC leadership crisis has persisted since Nwosu stepped down in 2025, paving the way for the emergence of the Mark-led leadership.
The development subsequently triggered competing claims to the party’s leadership, multiple court cases and disagreements over the constitutional process for appointing national officers.
Thursday’s judgment has now intensified the dispute, placing the party’s presidential ticket and other nominations under serious legal uncertainty.
With Atiku promising to appeal the ruling and Gombe insisting that the judgment must be implemented, the ADC faces another difficult legal and political battle as preparations for the 2027 general elections gather momentum.
