A faction of the African Democratic Congress, led by Senator David Mark, has approached the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking orders to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission to reverse its decision deleting the party’s top officials from its records.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, follows the removal of the names of Mark, listed as National Chairman, and Rauf Aregbesola, National Secretary, from INEC’s official portal on April 1.
In a motion on notice dated April 7, the embattled chairman, through his counsel, Sulaiman Usman, SAN, prayed the court to issue a mandatory injunction directing the electoral body to immediately restore the names of the party’s National Working Committee members as they existed before the dispute.
The application, brought pursuant to Order 26 Rules 1 to 4 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2019, as well as under the court’s inherent and equitable jurisdiction, seeks three principal reliefs.
Part of the reliefs reads, “An order of mandatory injunction, setting aside the decision, act, or directive of the respondent removing the names of the applicant’s National Working Committee from its official portal and the decision of refusal to attend or monitor the applicant’s congresses or convention pending the hearing and determination of the suit.”
The applicant also sought “an order of mandatory injunction, directing INEC to forthwith restore and maintain records of the names of Senator David Mark as National Chairman and Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary, as well as all members of the National Executive Committee.”
In addition, the motion is seeking “an order restraining INEC from tampering with, or otherwise interfering with, the said leadership records of the 1st defendant, recognising or giving effect to any contrary or competing claims, pending the final determination of this suit.”
The application is a direct response to the March 12 judgment of the Court of Appeal in a dispute initiated by a former deputy national chairman of the party, Nafiu Gombe, before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court.
In a seven-point argument supporting the motion, Usman contended that the appellate court had expressly ordered all parties to maintain the status quo ante bellum, a legal principle referring to the last uncontested state of affairs before litigation commenced.
He argued, “As of Sept. 2, 2025, when this action was instituted, the 2nd defendant (Senator David Mark) was the recognised national chairman of the 1st defendant.
“The said leadership structure had already been constituted. The plaintiff had already resigned his prior office and had no subsisting role within the party.”
The senior advocate further submitted that INEC acted under a misinterpretation of the appellate court’s directive by removing the names of the party’s leadership, thereby creating what he described as a vacuum within the party’s structure.
According to him, the electoral umpire’s decision amounts to a position of non-recognition that is inconsistent with the true intent of the Court of Appeal’s order and capable of undermining the substance of the pending suit.
Usman added, “The law is settled that a mandatory injunction may be granted at an interlocutory stage to restore a party to the position wrongfully altered.
“This is a proper case for the exercise of the equitable jurisdiction of this honourable court.”
In a related application also filed on April 7 but dated April 2, the applicant is seeking an accelerated hearing of the case, citing the urgency and far-reaching implications of the dispute on the party’s operations.
The motion urges the court to abridge the time within which parties are to file and exchange processes and to order a day-to-day hearing until the matter is finally determined.
Justifying the request, the lawyer argued that the suit raises fundamental issues affecting the leadership structure of a registered political party and has broader implications for democratic governance and political participation.
He stated that the Court of Appeal had already directed that the matter be heard expeditiously, warning that the lingering uncertainty over the party’s leadership is hampering its internal administration and political activities.
Usman further noted that the situation could encourage the emergence of parallel structures and conflicting claims within the party if not urgently resolved.
“The continued pendency of the suit is capable of rendering the subject matter nugatory,” he said.
Court records show that the dispute dates back to September 2025, when the trial judge declined an ex parte application filed by Gombe seeking to halt the activities of the Mark-led leadership pending the determination of the suit.
The court, instead, ordered the plaintiff to put all defendants on notice to show cause why the application should not be granted.
Following the development, the Mark-led leadership challenged the jurisdiction of the trial court at the Court of Appeal, which subsequently directed parties to return to the lower court and maintain the status quo ante bellum.
In the substantive suit, Gombe listed the African Democratic Congress, Mark, Aregbesola, INEC and Ralph Nwosu as 1st to 5th defendants.
Nwosu, a former national chairman of the party, had earlier stepped down, paving the way for Mark’s emergence as leader of the party.
