The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a lawsuit filed by promoters of the All Democratic Alliance seeking to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission to register the association as a political party ahead of future elections.
Justice Emeka Nwite, who delivered the judgment, ruled that the case filed by the group was legally incompetent and unsupported by sufficient and credible evidence. The court held that the plaintiffs failed to properly establish their claims against INEC and other defendants named in the suit.
The suit was instituted by promoters of the association led by Umar Ardo, who asked the court to order INEC to formally recognise and register ADA as a political party under the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022. The plaintiffs also requested the court to declare the association automatically registered on the grounds that INEC allegedly failed to act on its application within the statutory timeframe provided by law.
However, the case suffered a major setback after the second and third defendants, Chief Akin Ricketts and Aminu Ahmed, raised a preliminary objection challenging the procedure used in filing the suit. They argued that the issues raised by the plaintiffs involved disputed facts and serious allegations that could not be resolved through an originating summons.
In his ruling, Justice Nwite agreed with the objection and stated that the plaintiffs adopted the wrong legal process in approaching the court. According to him, the nature of the allegations before the court required oral evidence, witness testimony and cross-examination, which are procedures only available under a writ of summons.
The judge explained that the claims raised by the plaintiffs involved contentious issues, including allegations of fraud and disputed political affiliations, making the originating summons procedure inappropriate for the matter. He therefore held that the entire suit was incompetent because it was commenced through an improper legal process.
Justice Nwite consequently upheld the preliminary objection filed by the defendants and struck out the case. The court declared that the suit could not proceed because it failed to comply with proper procedural requirements under Nigerian law.
Despite striking out the matter on procedural grounds, the judge still went ahead to examine the substantive claims made by the plaintiffs in order to determine whether the case had merit if the procedural issue was overlooked.
On the substance of the matter, the court ruled that the plaintiffs failed to prove their allegation that Chief Akin Ricketts had defected from ADA to the African Democratic Congress before the case was filed. The plaintiffs had relied heavily on newspaper reports and online publications to support their claims that Ricketts was no longer part of the association.
However, Justice Nwite held that newspaper publications alone cannot serve as proof of the truth of allegations contained in them. According to the court, media reports only confirm that a statement was published and do not automatically establish the authenticity or accuracy of the claims reported.
The judge cited several legal authorities and judicial precedents, including notable cases involving Ojukwu v Yar’Adua and Fawehinmi v IGP, to support the position that newspaper publications cannot be treated as conclusive evidence in court proceedings.
Justice Nwite further noted that the plaintiffs failed to provide independent and verifiable evidence showing that Ricketts officially joined the ADC. According to the court, there was no membership card, party register, dues payment record or any official documentation linking him to the political party as alleged.
The court also agreed with INEC’s submission that the promoters of ADA failed to comply with important constitutional and electoral requirements guiding political party registration in Nigeria.
One of the major issues identified by the court was the inconsistency in the names of interim national officers submitted to INEC compared to those contained in the association’s original application documents. Justice Nwite stated that the plaintiffs failed to provide satisfactory explanations for the discrepancies discovered in the documents presented before the court.
According to the judge, the inconsistencies weakened the credibility of the plaintiffs’ claims and further undermined their argument that INEC acted unlawfully in refusing to register the association.
After reviewing all the evidence and submissions presented by the parties, Justice Nwite concluded that the plaintiffs failed to establish a credible case deserving of judicial intervention. He held that the claims before the court lacked merit and were not supported by reliable evidence.
The judgment represents another significant legal hurdle for promoters of the All Democratic Alliance as efforts to secure official recognition as a political party continue ahead of future political contests in Nigeria.
