A Federal High Court in Lokoja has set aside its earlier judgment directing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) as a political party, ruling that the case must be heard afresh with all interested parties joined.
Delivering the ruling on Friday, Justice Isah Dashen held that the previous judgment was fundamentally flawed because it was delivered without hearing all parties whose interests were directly affected.
The court upheld an application filed by the Peace Movement Party (PMP), declaring the party a necessary party to the suit.
According to Justice Dashen, the earlier judgment was constitutionally defective, having been delivered in breach of the principle of fair hearing.
He ruled that the failure to include all relevant parties rendered the entire proceedings null and void.
The judge further ordered that the status quo be restored to its state before the court’s December 10, 2025, judgment, pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Justice Dashen also held that material facts were suppressed during the earlier proceedings, a development he said justified vacating the judgment.
Consequently, the court directed that the substantive suit should commence afresh, with INEC, the Peace Movement Party, and the Nigeria Democratic Congress joined as parties.
Speaking to journalists after the ruling, counsel to the applicant, Chikezie Ekeocha, said the PMP approached the court after discovering that the NDC’s registration was based on a logo the party had earlier submitted to INEC before the commencement of the original suit.
According to Ekeocha, the court agreed that the PMP’s rights had been affected and consequently nullified the earlier judgment.
“The court has ordered all parties to return to the position they occupied before the judgment of December 10, 2025, and directed the claimants to join all necessary parties to ensure the issues in dispute are effectually and completely determined,” he said.
Ekeocha explained that the ruling effectively reverses every action taken by INEC in compliance with the now-vacated judgment.
“The recognition of the NDC, the issuance of its certificate of registration, its inclusion in INEC’s records, and any appearance on ballot papers arising from that judgment must be withdrawn pending the final determination of the substantive suit,” he said.
He, however, clarified that the substantive case remains pending before the court.
“The matter has not been concluded. The court merely set aside its previous judgment and directed that the party whose interests were affected be joined so that all sides can be heard before a fresh decision is reached,” Ekeocha added.
He also dismissed suggestions that the court merely ordered parties to maintain the status quo, insisting that the ruling expressly restored the position that existed before the December 10, 2025 judgment.
The ruling effectively reopens the legal battle over the registration of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, with the Federal High Court set to hear the case afresh after all relevant parties have been joined.
SOURCE: NAN
