Court to hear suit challenging Mark, Aregbesola’s ADC leadership today

THE legal challenge to the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) under Senator David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola will return to the Federal High Court Abuja on Monday (today), September 14.

Justice Peter Lifu is expected to hear the case filed by a former Deputy National Chairman of the party, Nafiu Bala Gombe, challenging the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola as national chairman and national secretary of the ADC, respectively.

A hearing notice issued by the court and served on the parties indicated that proceedings would resume at 9am, coinciding with the scheduled end of the 2026 annual vacation of the federal high court.

The case centres on Gombe’s claim that the emergence of Mark, Aregbesola and other members of the party’s leadership did not comply with the ADC constitution and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act governing the emergence of political party executives.

Gombe is asking the court to restrain Mark, Aregbesola and other members of the leadership from presenting themselves as officials of the ADC.

The plaintiff listed the ADC, Mark, Aregbesola, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the party’s former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, as the first to fifth defendants.

The latest hearing follows a series of interlocutory applications filed by the defendants and some members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC).

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A total of 27 motions challenging the suit and seeking its dismissal at the preliminary stage were filed by Mark, Aregbesola, the ADC and other defendants.

Justice Lifu dismissed the applications, describing them as unmeritorious, while also rejecting separate attempts by some NWC members to join the case as defendants.

The judge held that the interests of the NWC members could be addressed through the court’s eventual decision on the claims against Mark and Aregbesola, who were sued alongside the NWC.

The court subsequently imposed a fine of N1 million each on Mark, Aregbesola and the ADC, ordering that the money be paid to Gombe and two other plaintiffs.

The sanctions followed the court’s finding that the series of applications amounted to an attempt to delay the proceedings and waste judicial time.

At Monday’s sitting, parties are expected to adopt their respective briefs of argument.

Following the adoption of the briefs, the court is expected to fix a date for judgment in the substantive suit.