A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties.
Presiding Judge of the court, Justice Peter Lifu, issued the order on Monday, June 15, while delivering judgment in a suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators.
Other political parties affected by the order are the Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
The plaintiff asked the court to determine whether INEC is constitutionally required to deregister political parties that fail to meet the performance thresholds stipulated in section 225A of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
According to the plaintiff, the five parties had consistently failed to meet the conditions for retaining their registrations, including securing at least 25 per cent of the vote in a state during a presidential election or winning elective positions at the national, state, or local government levels.
They further argued that the parties failed to achieve the required electoral performance in the 2023 general election and subsequent by-elections conducted by INEC.
The group contended that allowing the parties to remain registered despite their poor electoral showing was contrary to constitutional provisions and detrimental to the integrity of the electoral process and prayed the court to compel INEC to deregister them.
In addition, the plaintiff sought orders restraining the affected political parties from participating in elections, conducting primaries, organising rallies, or carrying out other political activities pending compliance with constitutional requirements.
Justice Lifu, in his judgment, upheld the plaintiff’s arguments and ordered INEC to deregister the five political parties.
