The legal dispute over the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) involving former Senate President David Mark, former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola and other party officials will resume at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday, September 14.
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The case, being handled by Justice Peter Lifu, was instituted by former ADC Deputy National Chairman Nafiu Bala Gombe against the party’s National Executive Committee led by Mark.
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The hearing is scheduled for 9am, following the end of the 2026 annual court vacation. A hearing notice has been issued to all parties involved in the leadership dispute.
The resumption comes after the court imposed a total fine of N3 million on Mark, Aregbesola and the ADC over what it considered attempts to delay the proceedings through several motions.
Justice Lifu had awarded N1 million each against Mark, Aregbesola and the ADC, with the money ordered to be paid to Gombe and two other plaintiffs in the case.
The defendants had filed 27 separate motions seeking to challenge and dismiss the suit at the preliminary stage. The court rejected the applications, describing them as lacking merit.
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Some members of the ADC National Working Committee had also applied to be joined as defendants in the case. Justice Lifu rejected the applications, ruling that their interests could be addressed through the court’s eventual decision on the claims against Mark and Aregbesola, who were sued alongside the NWC.
The September 14 proceedings are expected to involve the adoption of briefs of argument by the parties. Following the adoption, the court is expected to set a date for judgment.
Gombe is asking the court to stop Mark, Aregbesola and other members of the current leadership from presenting themselves as national officers of the ADC.
The suit names the ADC, Mark, Aregbesola, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and former ADC National Chairman Ralph Nwosu as defendants.
The plaintiff’s case centres on the process through which Mark, Aregbesola and others emerged as national leaders of the party.
Gombe contends that the emergence of the officials did not comply with the ADC constitution and provisions of the Electoral Act governing the election of political party executives through national conventions.
He is also challenging what he described as an alleged takeover of the party’s leadership by the current officials.
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