A federal high court sitting in Abuja has fixed February 16 for the hearing of a suit seeking the deregistration of five political parties over alleged non-compliance with constitutional requirements.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2025, was filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators (NFFL) against the Africa Democratic Party (ADC), Accord Party, Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), Action Alliance (AA), and Action Peoples Party (APP).
The forum had told the court that the parties did not secure 25 percent of the vote in any state in the last presidential election.
The NFFL argued that the parties did not win any seat in the August 2025 bye-elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), adding that the outcome fell below the minimum legal threshold.
The former lawmakers urged the court to declare that the parties have failed to meet the requirements of the constitution and the Electoral Act and should be deregistered.
Section 225 empowers INEC to deregister a political party that violates registration conditions or fails to meet the minimum electoral benchmarks, including securing at least 25 percent of votes in any state during a presidential poll.
In February 2020, INEC deregistered 74 parties for “failing to meet the criteria” provided in section 225(a) of the 1999 Constitution.
The supreme court later upheld the decision in March 2022.
In a statement on Wednesday, Raphael Igbokwe, NFFL national coordinator, said the continued existence of political parties that failed to satisfy constitutional and electoral benchmarks “undermines democratic accountability, weakens the party system, and erodes the integrity of Nigeria’s electoral process”.
Igbokwe said the legal action is not politically motivated but “firmly rooted in the rule of law, constitutional compliance, and the urgent need to sanitise Nigeria’s political space of inactive, non-performing, and constitutionally non-compliant parties. ”.
He said the forum is committed to the protection of Nigeria’s democratic institutions, the enforcement of constitutional provisions, and the promotion of a credible, disciplined, and accountable multi-party system.
Igbokwe added that the outcome of the case will have “far-reaching implications” for political party regulation, democratic consolidation, and constitutional governance in Nigeria.
