Justice Peter Lifu of Abuja Federal High Court rejects Senator Clever Marcus Ikisikpo’s bid to join suit seeking to bar ADC from 2027 elections
Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected the attempt by former Bayelsa State Senator Clever Marcus Ikisikpo to join a suit seeking to bar the African Democratic Congress (ADC) from participating in the 2027 general elections.
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Senator Ikisikpo approached the court on Tuesday with a motion on notice, requesting to be made a co-plaintiff in the legal action.
His lawyer, Kalu Kalu Agu, filed the motion to persuade the judge to allow Ikisikpo to join those who instituted the case against the opposition party.
The former legislators who originally filed the suit opposed Ikisikpo’s request, led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Yakubu Abdullahi Ruba.
They argued that Ikisikpo was not a member of their association and described his attempt to join the suit as unnecessary and suspicious.
Justice Lifu subsequently ordered Ikisikpo’s lawyer to provide evidence of his client’s membership in the plaintiff association, which was not provided.
The judge noted that being a former lawmaker did not automatically qualify Ikisikpo for membership.
Acknowledging this, Kalu Agu withdrew the application, and the judge struck it out.
The suit seeks to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the ADC, alongside other parties including the Accord Party, Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), and Action Alliance (AA), over alleged breaches of Section 225 of the 1999 Constitution.
The forum of former legislators argues that INEC is constitutionally required to deregister parties that fail to meet minimum electoral performance thresholds, including securing at least 25 per cent of votes in one state during presidential elections or winning seats at any level of government.
The plaintiffs are seeking declaratory orders compelling INEC to enforce constitutional thresholds and restraining the electoral body from recognising or enabling political activities of the affected parties pending full compliance.
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They argued that allowing noncompliant parties to participate in the 2027 elections would waste public resources, clog ballot papers, and undermine electoral integrity.
