- Safiu Kehinde
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has clarified the ruling of the Court of Appeal over the party’s leadership dispute as it held that the case is still pending before the Federal High Court.
This was made known in a statement issued on Saturday by the ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi.
As against reports suggesting the appellate court’s ruling which allegedly granted relief to the plaintiff in the case, Abdullahi clarified that the court never made such ruling against its National Chairman, Sen. David Mark, and National Secretary, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.
“Having carefully studied the judgment, we wish to state unequivocally that the Court of Appeal did not determine the substantive dispute regarding the leadership of the ADC.
“The case challenging the emergence of Senator David Mark as National Chairman and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary is still pending before the Federal High Court and has not yet been heard or decided on its merits.
“Importantly, the Court of Appeal did not grant any relief in favour of the plaintiff, nor did it issue any order affecting the leadership structure of the party.” The ADC spokesperson wrote.
As against the reports, Abdullahi held that the court ordered that parties in the suit should maintain their status quo which implied that the Mark and Aregbesola-led leadership remains valid.
He urged the party members not to be misled by misinterpretations of the judgement.
“On the contrary, the court ordered that parties should maintain the status quo, meaning that the current state of affairs within the party should remain unchanged pending the determination of the substantive suit.
“Members of the ADC are therefore advised not to panic or be misled by misinterpretations of the judgment.
“The ruling of the Court of Appeal is purely procedural and does not affect the legitimacy or tenure of the current national leadership of the party.
“The ADC remains united and focused despite the antics of anti-democratic forces bent on imposing a one-party rule on Nigeria.” The statement read further.