The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld a Federal High Court judgment restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising or participating in any state congresses organised by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) leadership led by David Mark.

In the lead judgment, Justice Okon Abang ruled that “the trial court decision to grant the reliefs sought by the 1st to 7th respondents is in order,” adding that the ADC state chairmen are entitled to a four-year tenure as provided for in the party’s constitution.

The case was filed by seven ADC state chairmen, who represented themselves as well as other state chairmen and state executive committees of the party. They argued that the David Mark-led leadership had no constitutional authority to organise state congresses or appoint congress committees while their elected tenure was still subsisting.

They asked the court to declare that only duly constituted state executive committees could organise state congresses and urged it to restrain INEC from recognising any congress conducted by the party’s interim leadership.

Earlier, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court ruled that the ADC’s elected State Working Committees remained the party’s recognised officials. She held that, under the party’s constitution, they, and not the National Working Committee, have the authority to organise state congresses and manage the party’s affairs at the state level.

David Mark, the party’s National Chairman, and National Secretary Rauf Aregbesola challenged the decision at the Court of Appeal, asking it to set aside the lower court’s ruling.

However, the appellate court agreed with the Federal High Court that the matter was not an internal party affair beyond the court’s jurisdiction.

Justice Donatus Okorowo also held that the appeal lacked merit and affirmed the decision of the lower court.

The Court of Appeal noted that the appellants failed to rely on recent Supreme Court judgments in similar cases involving the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which confirmed that courts may intervene where political parties violate their own constitutions.

The court further held that the state chairmen were right to approach the Federal High Court because the party’s internal mechanism could not fairly resolve a dispute involving those already in control of its leadership.

The justices concluded that the elected state chairmen remain entitled to complete their four-year tenure under the ADC constitution and that only those recognised party structures have the authority to conduct state congresses.

The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has described as ‘blatant lies’ claims that the Nafiu Bala Gombe-faction has uploaded the names of a presidential candidate and other nominees to the nomination portal of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

In a statement by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said INEC does not issue nomination portal access or nomination codes to a leadership it does not recognise, adding that the Commission will not issue two codes to the same party.

Abdullahi challenged Nafiu-Gombe to provide the evidence of the purported upload, expressing optimism that the Commission will investigate the matter and take the necessary steps to correct the ‘blatant misrepresentation’.

“The African Democratic Congress, ADC, wishes to draw the attention of the media and the general public to false reports claiming that a group led by Mr. Nafiu Bala Gombe has uploaded the names of a presidential candidate and other nominees to the INEC nomination portal. The claim is a blatant lie. And it is quite easy to verify why.

“INEC does not issue nomination portal access or nomination codes to a leadership it does not recognise. Secondly, the Commission will not issue two codes to the same party.

“Otherwise, every impostor would simply upload names to the portal and proclaim themselves the authentic leadership of a political party. That is plainly not how the law or the Commission’s processes work.

“The question, therefore, is straightforward: where is the evidence of this purported upload by a group of individuals not known by law or the electoral body?

“We are also, by this statement, formally drawing the attention of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to what appears to be the forgery and unauthorised use of documents purportedly emanating from the Commission in a manner capable of creating confusion and undermining public confidence in its integrity and reputation as Nigeria’s electoral umpire,” the ADC statement said.

The Atiku Media Office has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of unlawfully granting portal access to a rival faction of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, to upload candidates for the 2027 general election.

The media outfit alleged that the move is aimed at weakening opposition parties.

The allegation is contained in a statement issued by the Atiku Media Office in Abuja on Monday.

According to the statement, Nafiu Bala Gombe, who it described as a “pretender” to the ADC national chairmanship, announced on July 11 that he had successfully uploaded the names of his candidates to INEC’s candidate nomination portal.

The Atiku Media Office maintained that access to INEC’s candidate nomination portal is meant for the recognised leadership of political parties in line with the commission’s guidelines for the 2027 general election.

“By granting access code to Bala Gombe, a pretender laying claims to the chairmanship of the ADC, though the law is not on his side and INEC has since validated the chairmanship of the Sen. David Mark-led exco, the electoral umpire is once again manifesting its partisanship,” the statement said.

Stressing that only the leadership headed by former Senate President David Mark is recognised by law, it insisted that any candidate list submitted by Gombe is invalid.

“The so-called successful uploading of candidates by Nafiu Bala Gombe is neither grounded in law nor supported by INEC’s own guidelines. Nafiu Bala Gombe is not recognised as ADC Chairman. Mark is duly recognised. Can there be two recognised Chairmen of a political party? Possibly only in an INEC led by Amupitan,” the statement added.

The Atiku Media Office also alleged that Gombe did not conduct valid party primaries as required by the Constitution and the Electoral Act, maintaining that only candidates produced through the recognised ADC leadership can be accepted by law.

“The INEC granting of access code to Nafiu Bala Gombe is unconstitutional and unlawful. The only submitted candidates known to the law are those of David Mark. Any parallel submission such as Nafiu Bala Gombe’s is null and void,” it stated.

The Atiku Media Office urged INEC to clarify the circumstances surrounding the portal access granted to Gombe and refrain from actions it claimed could create internal crises within opposition political parties.