Judge prohibits electoral commission from acknowledging party gatherings organised by faction headed by Mark

The Federal High Court in Abuja has issued a ruling barring the Independent National Electoral Commission from participating in or recognising any congress organised by the disputed caretaker leadership of the African Democratic Congress, led by Sen. David Mark.

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Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, in her judgment, also restrained the Mark-led leadership of the ADC from interfering with the functions and tenure of elected state executives, citing the party's constitution and the country's constitution as the basis for her decision.

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The judge held that the duty of conducting state congresses resides with state executive committees of the party, rather than the national executive committee, and that the four-year tenure of the ADC's State Working Committees and State Executive Committees remains valid and subsisting.

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This means that the tenure of these committees will continue until properly constituted state congresses are conducted and a national convention is convened, according to Justice Abdulmalik's ruling.

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The judge further held that the ADC's constitution and the country's constitution do not empower the party's Caretaker/Interim National Working Committee, led by Mark, to appoint any congress committee for the purpose of conducting state congresses.

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The lawsuit was filed by Norman Obinna and six other aggrieved state chairmen of the ADC, who challenged the legality of actions taken by the David Mark faction of the party, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.

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The plaintiffs argued that the caretaker body lacked the constitutional authority to organise state congresses or appoint committees for that purpose, and asked the court to affirm their tenure and stop any parallel process.

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Justice Abdulmalik found the issue in the originating summons to be meritorious, and stated that the key question was whether the defendants, including Mr Mark, had constitutional or statutory authority to assume the powers of an elected state organ of the ADC.

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The judge cited Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution, which provides that political parties shall conduct periodic elections on a democratic basis, and article 23 of the party's constitution, which provides that national and state officers shall hold office for a maximum of two terms of eight years.

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According to Justice Abdulmalik, the law is settled that courts will not interfere in the internal affairs of political parties, but where there is an allegation of breach of constitutional or statutory provisions, the court has a duty to intervene.

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The judge found that the procedure adopted by the defendants, including the appointment of a "congress committee", is not recognised by the party's constitution, and ruled that the tenure of state executive committees remains valid and must be allowed to run its course.

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Justice Abdulmalik set aside the appointment of the committee and restrained INEC from recognising any congress organised by it, and also restrained Mark and other defendants from organising congresses or conventions outside the provisions of the party's constitution.

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The judge further restrained them from taking steps that could undermine or disrupt the authority of the state executive committees, which are the only elected structures with the authority to organise state congresses.

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Earlier, Justice Abdulmalik had delivered a ruling on the preliminary objections and counter-affidavits filed by the defendants, holding that the subject matter of the plaintiffs' action pertains to the affairs of INEC and therefore falls within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court.

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The judge declined to uphold the objection that the plaintiffs failed to exhaust internal dispute resolution mechanisms, stating that determining the issue would amount to deciding substantive questions prematurely.

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On the issue of locus standi, the judge held that the plaintiffs' locus standi and capacity emanate from the alleged violation, and that they shared a common grievance, making the representative action proper.

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The defendants in the suit include the ADC, David Mark, Patricia Akwashiki, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Oserheimen Osunbor, and INEC.

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The plaintiffs had challenged the legality of the caretaker or interim national working committees and urged the court to restrain INEC from recognising or participating in any congress organised by the caretaker committee.

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The plaintiffs contended that, under the party's constitution and the 1999 Constitution, the tenure of state executive committees subsists until valid congresses are conducted, and that any attempt to bypass them undermines internal party democracy.

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However, the defendants argued that the matter related to internal affairs of a political party and that it was not justiciable, and submitted that the plaintiffs lacked locus standi and that the suit was incompetent.