The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has rejected the Federal High Court ruling that set aside the judgment compelling the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register it as a political party, declaring that it will immediately challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.
The party maintained that Friday’s ruling did not amount to its deregistration and assured members, candidates and supporters that its political activities would continue uninterrupted.
Reacting to the judgment, the National Chairman of the NDC, Senator Moses Cleopas, said the party had instructed its legal team to contest the decision, arguing that the trial court lacked the jurisdiction to revisit its own final judgment.
In a statement posted on the party’s official Facebook page shortly after Justice Isah Dashen delivered the ruling, Cleopas expressed surprise over the court’s decision, contending that the applicant, the Peace Movement Party (PMP), was neither a registered political party nor part of the ongoing registration process before INEC.
He further argued that having already delivered its final judgment, the court had become *functus officio* and could not lawfully overturn that decision through a motion.
“There was no order directing our deregistration. However, we are dissatisfied with the decision that has been made, and we have instructed our team of lawyers to immediately proceed to the Court of Appeal to challenge the jurisdiction and propriety of His Lordship’s order,” he said.
The NDC chairman also sought to reassure party members that the court’s ruling had no immediate effect on its candidates or ongoing political activities.
“We assure the general public, and particularly our candidates at all levels, that our party is on course. The NDC has not been deregistered, and we are challenging today’s order at the Court of Appeal as soon as possible. We have no doubt that justice will be done,” he added.
Cleopas accused unnamed political interests of using the judiciary to undermine opposition parties and narrow Nigeria’s democratic space.
“We condemn efforts by those who seek to shrink the democratic space and stifle opposition voices and alternatives. Nigerians have a right to a full range of opinions, ideas, and alternatives, and political platforms and candidates should be allowed to participate in the 2027 general election process, which has already gone midway,” he stated.
He also described the application that resulted in Friday’s ruling as procedurally flawed, insisting that any party dissatisfied with the original judgment ought to have pursued an appeal instead of asking the trial court to overturn its own decision.
According to Cleopas, the application was “illegal and an outright abuse of court process.”
As of the time this report was filed, the NDC leadership was holding an emergency press conference at its national secretariat in Abuja to brief party members and the public on its next line of action.
The development followed Friday’s ruling by Justice Dashen, who vacated the court’s earlier judgment directing INEC to register the NDC as a political party.
The judge held that the December 10, 2025 judgment affected the rights of the Peace Movement Party, which claimed ownership of the logo relied upon in securing the earlier judgment but was not joined as a party to the proceedings.
Following the ruling, counsel to the applicant, C.S. Ekeocha, said the court restored all parties to the legal position they occupied before the December 10, 2025 judgment and ordered that every necessary party be joined before the substantive suit is heard afresh.
According to him, the decision effectively reversed all actions taken by INEC pursuant to the earlier judgment, including the recognition of the NDC and the issuance of its certificate of registration, pending the final determination of the case.
(Ripples)
