The Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal has strongly criticized Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, for his judgement delivered on Monday, which ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister five political parties. The Appeal Court stated that Justice Lifu exhibited judicial rascality by proceeding to hear and issue the order despite a prior order from the Court of Appeal and the pendency of the matter before the appellate court.
Stay of Execution Granted
The Court of Appeal has ordered a stay of execution of the High Court judgement. The parties affected by the initial ruling include the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Actions People’s Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), and Accord Party (AP). The High Court had ruled that these parties failed to meet the constitutional threshold as stipulated in Section 225 of the 1999 Constitution, which grants INEC the authority to deregister parties that do not comply with legal requirements.
Background of the Case
The Federal High Court's decision was based on the provision in Section 225 of the 1999 Constitution, which empowers INEC to deregister political parties that fail to meet certain conditions. However, the Court of Appeal's intervention has put the deregistration process on hold pending further legal proceedings.
Details of the case will be provided as more information becomes available.
