The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties over alleged failure to meet constitutional requirements for continued registration.
The judge, Peter Lifu, made the order in a judgment on Monday. He noted that the affected parties breached Section 225 of the Nigerian Constitution.
The section gives INEC the power to deregister political parties that failed to win any elective position or 25 per cent of the votes in the previous round of elections at the federal, state and local government levels
The judgement, if immediately enforced, is bound to lead to a deluge of disqualifications of candidates running for elective offices in the 2027 general elections and the upcoming off-cycle governorship elections slated for June and August this year in Ekiti and Osun states.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that the suit was filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators against INEC, the Attorney-General of the Federation and the affected opposition parties.
