The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has insisted it will participate in the 2027 general elections despite a Federal High Court judgment invalidating its caretaker leadership and the nomination of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate.
Bolaji Abdullahi, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, gave the assurance on Friday during an interview on Africa Independent Television (AIT), maintaining that the opposition party would not abandon its political activities despite the legal challenges.
Abdullahi said the ADC remained determined to contest the elections, insisting that the recent court ruling would not stop its preparations.
“We will contest the 2027 election. If there will be an election in Nigeria in 2027, the ADC will contest that election. The ADC will be on the ballot,” he said.
He added: “The thing is that we will never demobilise. We are a party, a coalition that was birthed in adversity.”
ADC Questions Conflicting Court Judgments
The party spokesperson argued that Thursday’s judgment contradicted an earlier ruling delivered by the Federal High Court in Abuja on July 2.
In Thursday’s judgment, Justice Peter Lifu declared the David Mark-led caretaker committee of the ADC illegal, ruling in favour of Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former national deputy chairman of the party from the North-East.
The court also invalidated decisions taken by the caretaker committee, including the process that produced Atiku as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 elections.
However, Abdullahi maintained that an earlier judgment by Justice Musa Liman, which dismissed a suit challenging the Mark-led leadership, had neither been appealed nor set aside.
Justice Liman had ruled that the court lacked jurisdiction to interfere in the internal affairs of the party, describing the case as non-justiciable.
Questioning which of the two decisions the party should obey, Abdullahi said:
“The July 2 judgement by Justice Liman had not been appealed. It has not been vacated. So, if you ask us as a party, the question we would ask ourselves is: which of the two courts should we obey?”
He described the legal controversy as an issue extending beyond the ADC, arguing that it raised concerns about the country’s democratic process.
“If we proceed with our campaign, they will say a judge has ruled that the man was not duly nominated. So, the point I seek to make is that what is at stake is not just the African Democratic Congress but the very soul of democracy in this country,” he said.
Abdullahi Accuses Federal Government of Orchestrating Legal Challenges
The ADC spokesperson also accused the Federal Government of orchestrating the legal challenges facing the opposition party.
He alleged that the latest court development followed the support the ADC received during its recent campaign rally in Sokoto State.
“After seeing what happened in Sokoto, they immediately brought out this case. They may say it is a conspiracy theory or a sheer coincidence, but politics is about impression and perception,” Abdullahi said.
He further accused the government of being involved in the legal developments while publicly distancing itself from the matter.
“The government can continue to play Pontius Pilate and say it knows nothing about it, that it is just about the law. But they are behind it. They orchestrated it,” he alleged.
Abdullahi also questioned why government ministers were celebrating the court judgment if the government had no involvement.
The allegations against the Federal Government were not independently established in the interview.
ADC Says It Will Not Be Deterred
Recalling previous legal challenges involving the party, Abdullahi said the ADC had remained active despite earlier attempts to deregister it.
He recalled the controversy surrounding the party’s removal from the ballot following an earlier deregistration decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
According to him, the party refused to surrender despite the challenges.
“When INEC deregistered us and removed our name from the ballot, they said the ADC was dead. I think I was here, and I told you we were not worried at all,” he said.
Abdullahi added that since the opposition coalition was announced, its leaders had spent considerable time dealing with court cases rather than building party structures and expanding their political activities.
The ADC’s latest position comes amid continuing legal uncertainty over its leadership and the validity of the process that produced its 2027 presidential candidate.
