THE Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday, May 8, adjourned indefinitely a suit challenging the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
The case, filed by ADC chieftain Nafiu Bala Gombe against former Senate President David Mark and others, was stalled after the court was informed that the plaintiff had applied for the reassignment of the matter to another judge.
Presiding judge, Emeka Nwite, adjourned the matter sine die following submissions that a request had been made to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court seeking the transfer of the case.
The suit is marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, and the plaintiff is seeking an order restraining Mark, former Osun State governor Rauf Aregbesola and others from parading themselves as ADC leaders. It alleged that their emergence as the party’s leaders violated the party’s constitution and provisions of the Electoral Act.
At the resumed hearing, plaintiff’s counsel, Luka Haruna, told the court that the Supreme Court had dismissed an interlocutory appeal filed by the defendants as lacking merit, according to PUNCH.
He also noted that the apex court had set aside an earlier order of the Court of Appeal which had halted proceedings in the substantive suit.
However, Haruna informed the court that the plaintiff had written to the chief judge requesting reassignment of the case and urged the court to await administrative action on the request.
The defendants opposed the application, arguing that it was a calculated attempt to delay proceedings and frustrate the accelerated hearing earlier ordered by the appellate courts.
Their lawyers reportedly described the move as “forum shopping” and an abuse of judicial process.
In his ruling, Nwite held that the court could not take any decision on the letter addressed to the chief judge without hearing from all parties, warning that doing so would violate the principle of fair hearing.
He further noted that since the correspondence was directed to the chief judge, the trial court lacked jurisdiction to pronounce on it.
The judge subsequently adjourned the matter indefinitely, stating that the adjournment would allow parties to obtain certified true copies of relevant Supreme Court proceedings, serve necessary documents, and await further directives from the chief judge.
Background
The latest development comes amid a prolonged leadership crisis within the ADC, which has intensified legal and political tensions within the party.
On April 30, 2026, the Supreme Court ordered the return of the dispute to the Federal High Court for full hearing, effectively setting aside earlier interim directives from the Court of Appeal that had attempted to preserve the status quo ante bellum in the party’s leadership structure.
The apex court held that the substantive issues must be resolved at the trial court level.
The ruling effectively reinforced the David Mark-led executive of the ADC, pending final determination of the case.
The dispute stemmed from a suit filed by Gombe, who is challenging the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola as the party leaders, insisting that he should leader the party instead.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M