Court sanctions David Mark, Aregbesola in fresh ADC leadership ruling

The Abuja Federal High Court has rejected a protest made by the African Democratic Congress’ (ADC) National Chairman, Senator David Mark, and the Party’s National Secretary, Rauf Aregbesola, in relation to the application for amendment of the suit to challenge their emergence as the party’s national executives.

Delivering his ruling on Friday, Justice Peter Lifu said the protest was “frivolous, baseless and devoid of merit.”

The court ruled that the request for an amendment of the case by ADC executive member, Nafiu Bala Gombe, was a normal civil procedure meant to serve justice and avoid a miscarriage of justice.

According to the court, the application became necessary following a change of legal representation and did not prejudice the defendants, who remain free to file fresh responses to the amended originating summons.

After reviewing the arguments presented by both parties, Justice Lifu ruled that there was no basis for the claim that the proposed amendment would unfairly disadvantage David Mark and Aregbesola.

The court subsequently dismissed their objections, granted Gombe leave to amend his suit and ordered both defendants to pay ₦500,000 in costs to the plaintiff.

The case is one of several legal disputes arising from the ADC’s leadership restructuring, which produced David Mark as National Chairman and Aregbesola as National Secretary.

Gombe, a former Deputy National Chairman of the party, is challenging their emergence, arguing that it violated the ADC Constitution and the provisions of the Electoral Act.

He is asking the court to restrain Mark, Aregbesola and other officials from presenting themselves as the party’s legitimate national leadership.

The leadership dispute has generated multiple court cases in recent months.

Earlier, the Court of Appeal directed parties to maintain the status quo, prompting the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to temporarily suspend recognition of the Mark-led leadership.

However, the Supreme Court later set aside the appellate court’s order, directed that the substantive matter be heard expeditiously and INEC subsequently restored the David Mark-led leadership on its official records pending the determination of the suit.

During Friday’s proceedings, Gombe’s counsel, Lukman Fagbemi (SAN), argued that the law permits amendments to originating processes before judgment and maintained that the changes were necessary to ensure substantial justice.

Counsel to David Mark, Dr. Suleiman Umar (SAN), opposed the application, contending that allowing the amendment after parties had exchanged legal arguments would give the plaintiff an unfair advantage.

Similarly, Realwan Okpanachi, counsel to Aregbesola, argued that the amendment fundamentally altered the nature of the case by introducing new claims and documents.

He maintained that the ADC National Executive Committee validly changed the party’s leadership during its meeting on July 29, 2025, after proper notice had been given to INEC in line with the law.

Okpanachi also alleged that Gombe initially filed an unsigned copy of the ADC Constitution and later introduced a signed version after reviewing the defendants’ objections, describing the move as an abuse of court process.

Justice Lifu, however, rejected those arguments, holding that the proposed amendments would not prejudice the defendants and should be allowed in the interest of justice as the substantive leadership dispute continues before the court.