The African Democratic Congress has petitioned the National Judicial Council against Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court over his judgment on the deregistration of political parties, following a recent Court of Appeal decision that overturned the ruling.
In an interview with ARISE TV monitored by The News Chronicle, the Counsel to the ADC, Dr. Alex Adum, described the appellate court’s verdict as a victory for constitutionalism, the rule of law, and multiparty democracy in Nigeria.
Adum said the Court of Appeal’s judgment invalidating the deregistration of five political parties reaffirmed the constitutional safeguards governing political parties and exposed what he described as errors in the lower court’s decision.
According to him, the appellate court held that the decision to deregister the parties lacked merit, arguing that the trial judge failed to properly evaluate the evidence before the court, particularly the provisions of Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution governing the deregistration of political parties.
He maintained that the constitutional provisions prescribe administrative, rather than judicial, criteria for determining whether a political party should remain registered.
Adum explained that under Section 225A, a political party satisfies the constitutional requirement by attaining stipulated electoral thresholds or winning at least one elective office in elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission or State Independent Electoral Commissions.
He added that the Supreme Court had, in an earlier decision involving the National Unity Party and INEC, affirmed that winning even a single councillorship seat is sufficient to satisfy the constitutional requirement.
READ ALSO: Outrage as Christians Allege Exclusion from Nigeria Customs Recruitment in Nasarawa, Bauchi
According to the lawyer, INEC had conducted its post-election review after the 2023 general elections and concluded that the affected political parties met the constitutional conditions for continued registration.
He claimed that the electoral commission also informed the court through an affidavit that the parties fulfilled the requirements under Section 225A.
“It was strange that Justice Lifu, despite all the evidence before him, still went ahead to deliver that judgment, which was an overreach,” Adum said.
The lawyer further alleged that the trial judge failed to abide by an existing order of the Court of Appeal staying proceedings, contrary to the principle of judicial hierarchy and discipline.
He also said the appellate court found that the individuals who instituted the suit at the Federal High Court lacked the legal capacity to do so.
Adum disclosed that the ADC had filed a petition against Justice Lifu before the National Judicial Council, urging the body to invoke its disciplinary powers against judicial officers found to have exceeded their constitutional authority.
“It has now become incumbent on the National Judicial Council to activate its disciplinary procedures to ensure that people who are fond of using judicial power to overreach themselves are punished,” he said.
The Court of Appeal had recently set aside the Federal High Court judgment that paved the way for the deregistration of five political parties, holding that the decision was inconsistent with the constitutional provisions regulating political parties.
Justice Lifu and the National Judicial Council had yet to react to the allegations and the reported petition as of the time of filing this report.
