The Federal High Court in Abuja has once again issued an indefinite adjournment in the legal battle led by ADC chieftain Nafiu Bala Gombe, who is challenging the party’s leadership under former Senate President David Mark.
Justice Emeka Nwite put the proceedings on hold sine die after the plaintiff revealed he had petitioned the Chief Judge to transfer the case to a different judge.
The lawsuit, which involves high-profile figures like Mark and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, has sparked a leadership crisis within the ADC.
During the Friday session, the plaintiff’s lawyer, Luka Musa Haruna, noted that the Supreme Court recently dismissed an appeal by Mark that had previously stalled the case.
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“The interlocutory appeal of the second defendant has travelled to the Supreme Court. My Lord, we are glad to inform this honourable court that on the 30th day of April 2026, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment on the interlocutory appeal dismissing the said appeal for lacking in merit,” Haruna stated.
Despite this progress, Haruna requested the court to wait for a decision on their May 4 letter seeking a new judge, saying, “At this juncture, we must humbly pray to your Lordship, to wait for the administrative decision of the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.”
The move was met with fierce opposition from defense lawyers. Realwan Okpanachi, representing the first defendant, accused the plaintiff of catching them off guard: “We have not received any communication regarding that application. My Lord, so as it is, we don’t know the form or the content of that application. Therefore, we take the approach of the plaintiff as an ambush. We also consider it as an attempt to frustrate the order of accelerated hearing granted by the Court of Appeal and upheld by the Supreme Court.”
Similarly, counsel for the second defendant, Sulaiman Usman, criticized the request as an attempt at “judge shopping,” remarking, “So my Lord, for the plaintiffs to come back to this court, and to inform us today that they have written a private correspondence to the Honourable Chief Judge, and to hinge that to make a request for this court to await the outcome of that private correspondence, is not only unfortunate My Lord, but a dangerous trend which must not be allowed to stand.”
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Justice Nwite eventually ruled that he could not act on the transfer letter without ensuring all parties were heard, stating, “Taking a decision or any action in such a letter without hearing from the defendants will amount to breach of their fundamental right in this suit.”
In his final decision to halt proceedings indefinitely, the judge explained: “This matter is best adjourned sine die to afford the parties properly file a Certified True Copy of the judgment of the Supreme Court in the interlocutory appeal in the suit, to serve the defendants with the letter addressed to the Honourable Chief Judge, and finally to await further or any directive from the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.”
Gombe’s suit aims to stop Mark and Aregbesola from acting as ADC leaders, claiming their positions were obtained in violation of the party’s constitution and the Electoral Act.
