Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has nullified a Federal High Court judgment that had voided the registration of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) as a political party.
In a majority decision delivered on Friday, the appellate court held that the Federal High Court erred by setting aside its earlier judgment directing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register the NDC.
The case arose from a December 10, 2025 judgment in which the Federal High Court ordered INEC to register the NDC after the commission had refused to recognise the party.
However, on June 26, 2026, the Federal High Court set aside the earlier judgment following an application by the Peace Movement Party (PMP), which sought to be joined in the suit.
The PMP had argued that its interests were affected by the NDC registration, particularly over the party’s proposed logo. The court subsequently ordered that the substantive case be heard afresh with INEC, the PMP and NDC as parties.
NDC challenged the decision at the Court of Appeal, arguing that the Federal High Court lacked the power to reopen and overturn its own final judgment.
Court of Appeal, in its majority ruling, agreed with the NDC’s position and held that a trial court could not assume appellate jurisdiction over its own final decision.
Justice Okon Abang, who was part of the three-member panel, disagreed with the majority decision. In his dissenting opinion, he held that the original suit was filed outside the period allowed by law and that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the case.
