A Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja, Kogi State, on Friday nullified the registration of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and ordered that the case be heard afresh.
Presiding judge, Justice Isah Dashen, ruled that all parties with an interest in the matter must be heard before any substantive decision can be made.
The court upheld an application filed by the Peace Movement Party (PMP), holding that the party was a necessary party to the suit. Justice Dashen stated that the earlier judgment delivered in December 2025 was constitutionally defective because it was issued without hearing from all interested parties.
He consequently set aside the previous judgment and ordered that the status quo be restored to the position that existed before the December 10, 2025 ruling.
The judge also noted that certain material facts were not disclosed during the earlier proceedings, which justified the decision to vacate the judgment.
As a result, the court directed that the substantive suit should begin afresh, with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the NDC, and the PMP participating as parties in the case.
Counsel to the applicant, Chikezie Ekeocha, told journalists that the PMP approached the court after discovering that the NDC’s registration was based on a logo the party had earlier submitted to INEC before the commencement of the suit.
According to him, the ruling effectively reverses all actions taken by INEC in compliance with the now-vacated judgment, including the recognition and registration of the NDC.
Ekeocha, however, clarified that the substantive case has not been concluded, stressing that the court only set aside its earlier judgment and directed that all affected parties be joined to ensure a fair hearing before a fresh decision is reached.
The ruling returns the dispute over the NDC’s registration to the Federal High Court for a fresh hearing involving all relevant parties.
