ADC Leadership Crisis: Court adjourns suit against Mark, Aregbesola

The Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned a suit seeking to stop former Senate President David Mark and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola from acting as leaders of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) until September 28.

The case, filed by an aggrieved ADC member, Nafiu-Bala Gombe, could not proceed on Monday as scheduled because the presiding judge, Justice Peter Lifu, did not sit.

The matter, which was fixed for the hearing of pending applications, was consequently adjourned to September 28.

Gombe is asking the court to restrain Mark, Aregbesola and members of the party’s interim National Working Committee (NWC) from presenting themselves as leaders of the ADC, arguing that their emergence violated provisions of the party’s constitution and the Electoral Act.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, listed the ADC, David Mark, Rauf Aregbesola, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Ralph Nwosu as the first to fifth defendants respectively.

Justice Lifu had earlier fixed the matter for hearing after dismissing an application by the ADC and Aregbesola seeking his withdrawal from the case over allegations of bias.

The judge ruled that the motions lacked merit and ordered ADC and Aregbesola to pay N1 million each to Gombe.

The dispute followed the emergence of Mark as the leader of the ADC’s interim leadership structure after Nwosu stepped aside as the party’s National Chairman.

While the new leadership has positioned itself as part of efforts to reposition the party ahead of future political contests, Gombe has challenged the process, insisting it breached existing legal and constitutional provisions.