Author: Gist Correspondent

The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed July 7 for the hearing of a fresh suit seeking an order compelling the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).

Justice Mohammed Umar adjourned proceedings on Monday after counsel to the plaintiff, B.J. Akomolafe, requested additional time to respond to court processes served on him earlier in the day by counsel to the NDC, Moses Achile.

Although lawyers representing the plaintiff and the NDC were present in court, INEC, listed as the first defendant in the suit, was not represented during the proceedings. The court subsequently directed that a hearing notice be issued and served on the electoral commission before the next adjourned date.

The suit was instituted by Mr. Ahidjo Karlahi, the Protem Director of Organisation of the All Democratic Alliance (ADA), who is challenging the legality of the NDC's registration as a political party. In the originating summons marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1115/2026, Karlahi argued that the NDC allegedly failed to comply with constitutional and statutory requirements governing political party registration.

According to the plaintiff, the NDC was neither among the associations prequalified by INEC during the 2025 political parties registration exercise nor among those that paid the mandatory administrative fee and obtained access to the electoral body's registration portal. He further alleged that the party did not complete the prescribed Form EC15A, which he described as the only valid means of applying for registration.

Karlahi maintained that these alleged omissions rendered the NDC's registration unconstitutional, unlawful and void. He is asking the court to declare INEC's continued recognition of the party illegal, nullify its certificate of registration, remove it from the register of political parties and restrain it from participating in any electoral activity.

The plaintiff insisted that the action was filed in his personal capacity to uphold constitutionalism, electoral integrity and the rule of law, stressing that it was not instituted on behalf of the All Democratic Alliance or any political group. He called on Nigerians, civil society organisations and the media to follow the proceedings closely, describing the case as a critical test of constitutional compliance in Nigeria's electoral process.

The fresh legal challenge comes just days after the Federal High Court in Lokoja, Kogi State, set aside its earlier judgment directing INEC to register the NDC as a political party. Justice Isah Dashen ruled that the previous judgment was constitutionally defective because all interested parties, including the Peace Movement Party (PMP), were not heard before the decision was delivered.

Following that ruling, the NDC announced its intention to challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal, setting the stage for another round of legal battles over the party's registration and participation in Nigeria's political process.