The Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, has set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court, Lokoja, deregistering the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC.
Justice Isah Dashen of the Federal High Court, Lokoja, had on June 26, 2026 ordered the deregistration of
NDC.
Justice Dashen’s judgement followed a suit brought before him by the Peace Movement Party, PMP, over a logo conflict.
In a 2-1 majority ruling, the Appeal Court justices held that the Lokoja Federal High Court committed an abuse of judicial power by attempting to sit on appeal over its own final judgment from December 10, 2025, which had originally directed the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to register the NDC.
The appellate majority dismissed the PMP as an unregistered “meddlesome interloper” without the legal standing to institute the action.
However, Justice Okon Abang dissented, arguing that the original 2025 suit by the NDC was filed out of time and that the Lokoja venue choice amounted to forum-shopping, stating he would have upheld the deregistration
Commenting on the judgement, the national leader of the NDC, Senator Seriake Dickson said: “We want to use this opportunity once again to commend the Nigerian judiciary, and in particular, Hon. Justice Danjuma and Hon. Justice Hassan, for upholding the integrity of the Nigerian judiciary and, by their decisions, expanding the sphere of multiparty democratic participation in Nigeria.
“We have said repeatedly that the NDC was set up to expand the frontier of multiparty democracy in Nigeria.
“Justice Dashen’s judgment a few months ago was an unexpected assault on our constitutional right to participate and an attempt to narrow the democratic space.
“Happily, today, by the decision of the Court of Appeal, the Nigerian democratic space has been protected, and the NDC’s right to participate in all political activities as a registered political party has been upheld.”
Dickson congratulated all members and candidates of the NDC, and thanked Nigerians for their prayers and support.
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