ADC: Supreme Court dismisses David Mark’s application over leadership crisis
Nigeria’s Supreme Court has struck out an application seeking to halt the enforcement of a Court of Appeal judgment affecting the leadership of the Action Democratic Congress (ADC).
The decision followed the withdrawal of the motion by counsel to Senator David Mark, Jibril Okutekpa, SAN, during proceedings on Tuesday.
Legal setback deepens ADC leadership crisis
During the hearing, Okutekpa told the five-member panel, led by Justice Lawal Garba, that the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) interpretation of the appellate court ruling had left the party without a recognised leadership.
He explained that the directive for all parties to maintain the “status quo antebellum” had effectively created a vacuum within the party’s structure. He urged the court to act swiftly, citing the limited time before the 2027 general elections.
Supreme Court moves to fast-track case
Although the application was withdrawn and dismissed, the apex court issued fresh procedural guidelines to accelerate the hearing of the substantive appeal.
The court shortened timelines for filing legal briefs and responses, acknowledging the urgency of resolving the dispute ahead of the next electoral cycle.
It subsequently fixed April 22, 2026, for the hearing of the main appeal.
Origin of the dispute
The leadership crisis in the ADC stems from a lawsuit filed by Nafiu-Bala Gombe, a former Deputy National Chairman of the party.
He is contesting the legitimacy of the current leadership led by Senator David Mark as National Chairman and Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary.
Gombe had asked the court to stop both men and their allies from presenting themselves as party leaders, and also sought to restrain INEC from recognising them.
INEC action fuels controversy
Amid the legal tussle, INEC removed the names of Mark and Aregbesola from its official portal around April 1, 2026.
The electoral body cited the Appeal Court’s directive to maintain the status quo, alongside related legal communications, as the basis for its action.
Since then, the commission has refrained from recognising any faction within the party, pending a final court decision.
Watch the video here…
Supreme Court Dismisses David Mark's Application for Stay of Execution
The Supreme Court has dismissed an application for stay of execution of an Appeal Court ruling that led to the decision of electoral body, INEC to derecognize the Senator David Mark leadership of the Action… pic.twitter.com/rChDBCsYdr
— ARISE NEWS (@ARISEtv) April 14, 2026