The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has billed September 28, to hear a suit seeking to stop former Senate President David Mark-led leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) from parading themselves as leaders of the party.
The suit, filed by an aggrieved ADC member, Nafiu-Bala Gombe, was scheduled for hearing on Monday alongside other pending applications before Justice Peter Lifu, but proceedings could not commence as the presiding judge did not sit, prompting the court to adjourn the matter to September 28.
Gombe, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, is challenging the emergence of Mark, the former Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola and other members of the party’s interim National Working Committee (NWC), arguing that their assumption of leadership violated the ADC constitution and provisions of the Electoral Act.
He is seeking an order restraining Mark, Aregbesola and members of the interim NWC from continuing to present themselves as the legitimate leaders of the party pending the determination of the substantive issues before the court.
The case is also connected to an earlier appeal arising from the ADC leadership dispute, following a March 12 decision of the Court of Appeal directing parties to maintain the existing leadership structure pending the resolution of the substantive issues.
The Federal High Court had on June 16 fixed Monday for the hearing of all pending applications after dismissing separate applications by the ADC and Aregbesola seeking the withdrawal of Justice Lifu from the case.
The defendants had asked the judge to recuse himself over allegations of bias, but Justice Lifu ruled that the applications lacked merit.
The court subsequently awarded N1 million each against the ADC and Aregbesola in favour of Gombe.
Gombe had instituted the suit against the ADC, Mark, Aregbesola, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and former ADC National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, as the first to fifth defendants respectively.
Nwosu had stepped down as the party’s National Chairman following the emergence of Mark-led leadership structure.
With the court unable to sit on Monday, the pending applications and other issues before Justice Lifu will now come up for hearing on September 28.