A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has affirmed the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) headed by former Senate President David Mark, dismissing a suit challenging the appointments of Mark and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola as the party’s national chairman and national secretary.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, Justice Musa Liman ruled that the suit filed by House of Representatives member Leke Abejide lacked merit and was not justiciable, holding that the court had no jurisdiction to interfere in the internal affairs of a political party.
The judge upheld the preliminary objections raised by the ADC, its former National Chairman Chief Ralph Nwosu, Mark and Aregbesola, effectively striking out Abejide’s claims.
Justice Liman held that the plaintiff failed to establish that any of his legal rights had been violated by the emergence of the current party leadership. He also faulted Abejide for failing to exhaust the ADC’s internal dispute resolution mechanisms before approaching the court.
The court further resolved all the substantive issues in favour of the defendants, holding that Nwosu’s handover of the party’s leadership to Mark did not breach the ADC constitution.
According to the court, the July 2, 2025 meeting where Nwosu announced the leadership transition was merely a stakeholders’ meeting that preceded the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of July 29, 2025, which formally produced Mark and Aregbesola as the party’s leaders under the supervision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Justice Liman declared that the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola complied with the party’s constitution, the Electoral Act, 2026, and other applicable laws.
The court also imposed financial penalties on the plaintiff and his counsel.
Abejide was ordered to pay N2 million each to all the defendants, while his lawyer was slammed with a N10 million fine pursuant to the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026.
Abejide had instituted the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1637/2025, seeking to invalidate the leadership transition within the ADC.
Among other reliefs, he asked the court to nullify Nwosu’s transfer of the party’s leadership to Mark and Aregbesola at a meeting held on July 2, 2025, at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, describing the process as illegal, unlawful, null and void.
He also sought perpetual injunctions restraining Mark and Aregbesola from parading themselves as the party’s leaders and barring INEC from recognising them, arguing that their appointments failed to comply with the relevant provisions of the Electoral Act.
However, the court rejected all the claims, affirming the legality of the leadership change and leaving the Mark-led executive firmly in control of the opposition party.
(The Whistler)
