NDC blows hot as Federal High Court orders INEC to remove it from list of registered parties

By Kingston Magare 26.6.2026
Nigeria Democratic Congress top echelons were on Friday scrambling to respond to a ruling by a Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja, Kogi State ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remove the NDC from the list of registered political parties for the 2027 elections.
This development is coming two weeks after a similar ruling by a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja ordered the deregistration of five political parties including the African Democratic Congress and the Accord Party. But the ruling was upturned by the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja.
On Friday Justice Isah Dashen based his judgment delisting the NDC on a suit brought by the Peace Movement Party.
Lawyer to the Peace Movement Party, C.S. Ekeocha, claimed that the party approached the court after discovering that the NDC’s registration was based on a logo it had earlier submitted to INEC.
He said, “The recognition of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, the issuance of its certificate of registration, its inclusion in INEC’s records, and any appearance on ballot papers arising from that judgment must be withdrawn pending the final determination of the substantive suit.”
Meanwhile the NDC stated that it is heading for the Court of Appeal to challenge the ruling, which the party described as questionable judgement.
“The association that filed the complaint is unknown to us. The Peace Movement Party (PMP) is not a registered political party in Nigeria,” the NDC said in a statement.
“Therefore, we are surprised that, on an application by an association claiming that it wanted to register as a political party with the victory sign in 2015, His Lordship came to the conclusion that they have locus standi, and furthermore, that he has jurisdiction to do what he did.
“There was no order directing our deregistration. However, we are dissatisfied with the decision that has been made, and we have instructed our team of lawyers to immediately proceed to the Court of Appeal,” it said.
“We assure the general public, and particularly our candidates at all levels, that our party is on course. The NDC has not been deregistered, and we are challenging today’s order at the Court of Appeal as soon as possible.”