INEC opposes move to deregister ADC, says party ban has no legal basis

A fresh legal development has emerged in the dispute over the status of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has opposed efforts seeking the party’s deregistration.

Court documents show that INEC, in its filing before the court, rejected the application and maintained that it does not meet the constitutional and legal requirements needed to deregister a political party in Nigeria.

The electoral body argued that the deregistration of political parties is strictly guided by law and cannot be carried out arbitrarily or influenced by political considerations. It stressed that none of the recognised legal grounds for deregistration, including failure to meet electoral performance thresholds or breach of registration conditions, had been established against the ADC.

“The power to deregister political parties is neither discretionary nor subject to political pressure, but strictly governed by extant laws and constitutional provisions,” INEC stated in its submission.

Legal analysts say the position taken by the commission could significantly weaken the case and potentially lead to its dismissal, given INEC’s statutory role as the regulator of political parties in the country.

The filing has also sparked reactions within political and legal circles, with some interpreting it as an institutional resistance to what they describe as attempts to use the judiciary for partisan ends.

Reacting to the development, Phrank Shaibu, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, described the move against the ADC as politically driven.

“What we are witnessing is the unravelling of a poorly scripted political ambush designed to cripple opposition voices,” Shaibu said.

He further argued that INEC’s position validates concerns around the case, insisting that it exposes a political motive behind the application.

“The fact that INEC itself has come forward to puncture the legal vacuum of this application speaks volumes. It confirms what Nigerians already suspect, that this was never about law, but about intimidation,” he said.

Shaibu also warned against attempts to weaken political competition in the country, adding that democracy cannot thrive where opposition voices are deliberately targeted.

“No democracy survives where the ruling party seeks to eliminate competition through the back door. Nigeria is bigger than any administration, and its democratic space cannot be shrunk to accommodate political insecurity,” he added.

The matter is still pending before the court, while neither INEC nor the ADC has issued an official response as of the time of filing this report.

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