.Former Anambra State governor Peter Obi has criticised a Federal High Court judgment nullifying the emergence of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate for the 2027 election, warning that the decision could deepen uncertainty ahead of the polls.
Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, reacted to the ruling in a post on his verified X account on Thursday. He said he respected the judiciary’s authority to determine disputes but argued that the electoral process needed certainty as the election approached.
The judgment, delivered by Justice Peter Lifu in Abuja, nullified the leadership of the ADC led by former Senate President David Mark and invalidated decisions taken under that leadership, including the process that produced Atiku as the party’s candidate.
It also affected the emergence of former Interior Minister Rauf Aregbesola as the party’s National Secretary and the nominations of other ADC candidates for the 2027 elections.
“I have received with shock the news of an order by the Federal High Court in Abuja nullifying the emergence of the Chairman of the African Democratic Congress and all the actions he has taken. This is unsettling and surprising,” Obi wrote.
He added that while he did not challenge the court’s ruling, the timing raised concerns about uncertainty over candidates and parties in the months before the election.
Obi alleged that the ruling party was engineering instability within opposition parties, linking the development to the crisis in his former party, the Labour Party. He also accused it of using similar tactics to restrict civic space and frustrate opposition campaigns.
“One mark of democracy is that at all times, it is voters and not courts that choose leaders. I trust in the judiciary. As a public officer, I have shown deep respect for the judiciary,” he said.
Obi urged stakeholders to protect opposition politics and democratic institutions, saying Nigeria should not allow political competition to be undermined as military rule expands in parts of West Africa.
The ruling followed a suit filed by former ADC Deputy National Chairman for the North-East, Nafiu Bala Gombe, who challenged the process through which Mark and other members of the caretaker committee assumed control of the party.
Gombe argued that following the resignation of former national chairman Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally entitled to take over the party’s leadership. The court held that the Mark-led leadership breached the ADC constitution, the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.
The ADC has said it will appeal the judgment, while Atiku has also vowed to challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.
Obi and Atiku were among opposition figures who joined the ADC coalition in 2025 to challenge President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid. Obi and former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso later left the ADC and joined the NDC in May 2026, citing internal party concerns. Obi subsequently emerged as the NDC’s presidential candidate, with Kwankwaso as his running mate.
Atiku emerged as the ADC’s presidential candidate in May 2026, but the court ruling has now invalidated the process that produced his candidacy.
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