The Court of Appeal has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remove Senator David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola from its website as National Chairman and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). INEC complied, citing the appellate court's judgment in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/145/2026, Senator David Mark v Hon. Nafiu Bala Gombe & 4 Ors, and stated it would no longer recognise communications or meetings from Mark's faction. The commission confirmed receipt of two letters dated March 16, 2026—one from Suleiman Usman SAN & Co, representing ADC stakeholders urging INEC not to recognise Nafiu Bala Gombe as acting chairman due to ongoing litigation, and another from Summit Law Chambers, acting for Gombe, demanding enforcement of the Court of Appeal's order.
Mohammed Haruna, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, said the electoral body also received a follow-up letter on March 27, 2026, accusing INEC of inviting Mark's group to a political parties meeting on March 24 and monitoring an ADC National Executive Committee meeting in breach of court orders. The Court of Appeal had directed INEC to refrain from recognising any activities authorised by Mark or Aregbesola. The Federal High Court, in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, has ordered all parties to maintain the status quo pending resolution of the leadership dispute. Nafiu Bala Gombe, the party's Vice-National Chairman, insists he is the rightful acting chairman following the resignation of former chairman Ralph Okey Nwosu, while Mark's faction claims internal elections legitimised their leadership.
The Court of Appeal's intervention exposes the fragility of internal party democracy when succession disputes are left unresolved. By enforcing judicial orders, INEC is not choosing a side but avoiding complicity in a power struggle the courts are still untangling. The fact that Senator David Mark's group was invited to an official INEC meeting after the appeal ruling suggests a troubling delay in aligning administrative action with judicial direction. For Nigerian voters, this means another political party's credibility erodes while legal processes crawl.
