The Court of Appeal has suspended the execution of a Federal High Court judgment ordering the deregistration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord, Action Alliance (AA), Action Peoples Party (APP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
The appellate court’s decision offers temporary relief to key opposition figures, including ADC presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and Accord governorship candidate in Osun State, Ademola Adeleke.
A three member panel of the Court of Appeal unanimously ordered a stay of execution of the judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, pending the determination of appeals before it.
Justice Lifu had on Monday directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the five political parties on the grounds that they failed to meet constitutional requirements for continued registration.
However, the affected parties and INEC challenged the judgment, arguing that the trial judge proceeded to deliver the ruling despite an earlier order of the Court of Appeal directing him to stay further proceedings pending the hearing of an interlocutory appeal.
During proceedings, INEC aligned itself with the appellants, informing the appellate court that it only became aware of the judgment through media reports and had not received any formal notice from the lower court regarding its delivery.
The appellate court panel, led by Justice Abba Mohammed, criticised the conduct of the trial judge, describing his actions as a violation of the hierarchy of courts and an affront to judicial authority.
According to the panel, the trial court acted in disregard of a subsisting order of the Court of Appeal and proceeded with the matter despite being directed to suspend further proceedings.
The court subsequently granted the application for stay of execution, effectively halting the enforcement of the deregistration order.
The panel also fixed June 25 for hearing of the substantive appeals.
Reacting to the development, ADC National Chairman, David Mark, said the controversy had placed the Nigerian judiciary under scrutiny rather than the affected political parties.
Mark accused the trial court of acting contrary to established judicial procedures and expressed confidence that ADC would overcome the challenge.
Similarly, Atiku described the Federal High Court judgment as a threat to constitutional democracy, alleging that it formed part of a broader attempt to weaken opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general election.
The former vice president maintained that the ruling contradicted a subsisting order of the Court of Appeal and raised serious concerns about adherence to the rule of law.
Also reacting, the 2027 presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Adewole Adebayo, condemned the move to deregister opposition parties, describing it as unconstitutional and harmful to Nigeria’s democratic development.
Meanwhile, civil society groups have called on the National Judicial Council to investigate the circumstances surrounding the Federal High Court judgment.
The dispute originated from a suit filed by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators, which sought an order compelling INEC to deregister the affected political parties.
Justice Lifu had ruled that the parties failed to satisfy constitutional and electoral requirements necessary for their continued registration and directed INEC to withdraw recognition from them.
With the stay of execution now in place, the affected parties will continue to operate pending the outcome of the appeals before the Court of Appeal.
