JUST IN: Court orders deregisteration of ADC, Accord, three others

The federal high court in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord Party, Action Alliance, Action Peoples Party and the Zenith Labour Party over alleged failure to meet constitutional requirements for continued registration.

The judgment, delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, followed a suit filed by the national forum of former legislators, which asked the court to determine whether INEC is constitutionally obligated to remove political parties that fail to meet the performance thresholds stipulated in Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), as well as provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.

The plaintiffs argued that the affected parties had consistently failed to meet the minimum electoral benchmarks required to retain registration, including winning a significant share of votes in presidential elections or securing elective positions at federal, state, or local government levels.

They further contended that the continued recognition of such parties undermines the integrity of Nigeria’s electoral system and urged the court to compel INEC to deregister them ahead of preparations for the 2027 general elections.

In the ruling, the court agreed with the arguments and ordered INEC to proceed with the deregistration of the five political parties.