Court ruling: ‘Today it’s NDC, tomorrow it could be anyone’, ADC warns
By Luminous Jannamike
ABUJA — The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has condemned the Federal High Court in Lokoja for setting aside its earlier judgment recognising the NDC, describing the ruling as part of a broader assault on Nigeria’s democratic space ahead of the general election.
The ADC said the case is no longer just about the NDC. It argued that if one opposition party could become trapped in prolonged legal uncertainty today, any other party seeking to offer Nigerians an alternative could face the same fate tomorrow, warning that such a trend risks further shrinking the country’s democratic space barely seven months before Nigerians head to the polls.
The warning came in a statement by the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, who described the Lokoja court’s decision as ‘yet another troubling development’ and urged the judiciary to remain independent and impartial, saying public confidence in the courts was essential to protecting Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
“Yesterday’s target was the NDC. Tomorrow, it could be anyone who dares to offer Nigerians an alternative. We must not wait until the democratic space has been completely suffocated before we act.
“The judiciary remains one of the last lines of defence for our democracy and must never be perceived as an arena where political battles are settled on behalf of those who wield executive power. Justice must not only be done; it must be seen to be done,” Abdullahi stated.
The ADC argued that the NDC’s experience was not an isolated case, saying several opposition parties had, in recent months, been pulled into avoidable internal crises through what it described as curious legal battles and administrative interventions, adding that the ADC itself had not been spared.
“The cumulative effect of these attacks is unmistakable: they weaken the opposition, narrow the democratic space, and strengthen the hands of those already in power. This is not how a healthy democracy functions.
“This issue goes far beyond the fortunes of any single political party. It goes to the very heart of our constitutional democracy. When opposition parties are persistently distracted by manufactured controversies and prolonged legal uncertainty, the real casualty is the Nigerian people’s right to freely choose among credible political alternatives,” Abdullahi stated.
The ADC also accused the Bola Tinubu administration of failing to provide a level playing field for political actors, insisting that democracy can only flourish where institutions remain neutral and political competition is fair.
With barely seven months until the general election, the party said every development capable of undermining confidence in the electoral process deserved close scrutiny.
The ADC further warned that nothing poses a greater danger to constitutional democracy than a growing public perception that the courts are being used to achieve political objectives that should be decided through the ballot box.
It therefore called on opposition parties, civil society organisations, the legal community, organised labour, the media and all Nigerians committed to democratic governance to close ranks in defence of the country’s constitutional order against what it described as attempts to intimidate, weaken or silence legitimate opposition voices.
It said the constitutional rights to freedom of association, political participation and the choice of leaders belong to Nigerians and must be defended by all.
“The African Democratic Congress will continue to stand firmly with every Nigerian committed to preserving our democracy and we will continue to resist every attempt to reduce Nigeria to a one-party state in all but name,” the statement added.
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