Sowore condemns court order deregistering ADC, four other parties
Sowore Criticizes Court’s Decision to Deregister Political Parties
Omoyele Sowore, the presidential candidate for the African Action Congress (AAC), has voiced strong opposition to a Federal High Court ruling that mandates the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister five political parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Sowore characterized the ruling as undemocratic and detrimental to the principles of a multi-party democracy. His comments, made in a post on X on Monday, highlight the impact of the court’s decision on parties that had already conducted their primaries and were preparing for upcoming elections.
“I totally condemn the deregistration of political parties that have already concluded their primaries and are preparing for general elections. Such an action is undemocratic and unjustifiable in a multi-party democracy,” he stated.
The ruling was issued by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja, who instructed INEC to deregister the ADC along with the Action Peoples Party, Action Alliance, Accord Party, and Zenith Labour Party. Justice Lifu found that these parties had failed to meet the constitutional requirements necessary for continued registration under Section 225 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
This section allows INEC to remove political parties that do not secure elective positions in elections at the federal, state, and local government levels. The court determined that the affected parties no longer satisfied the constitutional criteria for maintaining their status and directed the electoral commission to update its list of recognized political entities.
