The Federal High Court overturned the NDC’s previous registration decision, ordering a new trial

The Federal High Court in Lokoja has overturned an earlier decision ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) as a political party, and ordered that the matter be heard again after all affected parties joined the suit.

In a ruling delivered on Friday, Justice Isah Dashen stated that the court’s decision on December 10, 2025 could not be maintained because it affected the interests of the Peace Movement Party (PMP), which was not a party to the trial despite having claimed the logo that was part of the dispute.

Therefore, the court returned all parties to the positions they held prior to the December 10, 2025 ruling and directed plaintiffs to include all necessary parties before the substantive issues are determined.

Speaking after the judgment, counsel for the Peace Movement Party, CS Ekeocha, explained that his client approached the court after learning that the registration of the NDC had been secured using the logo that PMP had previously submitted to INEC before the suit was filed.

According to him, the court agreed that the party’s interests were harmed by the previous process.

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“The court has ordered all parties to return to the positions they occupied prior to the decision on December 10, 2025, and directed the plaintiffs to join all necessary parties to ensure the disputed issues are decided effectively and completely,” he said.

Ekeocha stated that the immediate impact of the decision is that all actions taken by INEC based on the now vacated decision are no longer tenable.

“The recognition of the Nigerian Democratic Congress, the issuance of its certificate of registration, its inclusion in INEC records, and any appearance on the ballot paper arising from the said decision should be withdrawn pending the final determination of the substantive challenge,” Ekeocha added.

However, he stressed that the legal process over the party’s registration was not over, and explained that the court had only reopened the case to ensure that every interested party received a fair trial.

“The problem is not resolved. The court only set aside the previous decision and ordered the parties whose interests were harmed to join so that all parties could be heard before a new decision was made,” he added.

Ekeocha also rejected the notion that the court simply ordered the parties to maintain the status quo, and emphasized that the decision expressly restored the legal position that existed before the December 10, 2025 ruling, pending the determination of the substantive lawsuit.