The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to withdraw the registration of five political parties over their failure to satisfy constitutional requirements governing political parties in Nigeria.
The decision was delivered on Monday by Justice Peter Lifu, who ruled that the parties did not attain the electoral benchmarks required under the law to justify their continued recognition by the electoral body.
Those affected by the judgment are the African Democratic Congress, Accord, Action Alliance, Action Peoples Party and Zenith Labour Party.
The court also dismissed objections raised by the defendants before proceeding to grant the requests contained in the suit.
Justice Lifu held that the parties had fallen short of the constitutional standards expected of registered political organisations and consequently directed INEC to remove them from its register.
The judge further restrained the affected parties from taking part in future electoral contests, including the 2027 general elections.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026, was filed by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators, with INEC and the Attorney-General of the Federation listed among the defendants.
According to the plaintiff, the parties failed to demonstrate the level of electoral support and geographical spread required by law. The forum maintained that none of the parties successfully challenged the claims presented before the court, leading to the order for their deregistration.