INEC Breaks Silence on ADC Leadership Crisis, Says It Has Not Received Court Judgment

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it is yet to receive the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment concerning the leadership dispute within the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

The electoral commission maintained that it could not take any decision on the matter based on reports circulating on social media, insisting that it operates strictly on authenticated legal documents.

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INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday while responding to media enquiries about the implications of the court ruling for the ADC and its 2027 presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

Speaking on the development, Amupitan said the commission had not received the official court judgment and would therefore not act on unverified information.

“On ADC/Atiku: as of today, we have not received the Certified True Copy of the court judgment and we don’t act based on what we see on social media,” he said.

The clarification comes after the Federal High Court in Abuja reportedly nullified the leadership of the ADC under former Senate President David Mark and invalidated decisions taken by the party’s caretaker committee.

In the judgment delivered on Thursday, Justice Peter Lifu ruled in favour of Nafiu Bala Gombe, the party’s former National Deputy Chairman (North-East), who challenged the process through which the Mark-led leadership assumed control of the party.

Gombe had argued that following the resignation of the former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally entitled to assume the party’s leadership.

He subsequently approached the court, seeking to invalidate the actions and decisions taken by the caretaker committee led by Mark.

The ruling reportedly affected decisions of the committee, including the process relating to Atiku Abubakar’s emergence as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.

The development has raised questions about the ADC’s leadership structure and the political future of its presidential platform ahead of the next general election.

It also comes amid intensified political activities, with Atiku recently holding a rally in Sokoto State as part of his political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

However, INEC’s position suggests that the commission will await the official court documents before determining the appropriate steps to take regarding the party’s leadership and related electoral matters.