David Mark-Led ADC Sues INEC
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) led by Senator David Mark has sued the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seeking a court order to restore its leaders’ names to the portal.
Mark’s faction of the party wants the Federal High Court in Abuja to issue orders to compel INEC to reverse its decision deleting the party’s top officials from its website.
The suit comes on the trail INEC delisting Mark, listed as National Chairman, and Rauf Aregbesola, National Secretary, from the commission’s official portal on April 1.
INEC claims it took the step following the order of a court.
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.
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 September 2, 2025, when this action was instituted, the 2nd defendant (Senator David Mark) was the recognised national chairman of the 1st defendant.
“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.
