The Attorney General of the Federation has filed a suit against the Federal High Court, Abuja, seeking an order that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) de-register five political parties for failing to meet constitutional requirements.
The affected parties were said to include the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Alliance (AA), Action Peoples Party (APP), Accord Party (AP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
It was filed by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators and is marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026.
The plaintiffs argued that INEC’s continued recognition of the parties contravenes constitutional provisions and undermines electoral integrity.
According to them, the parties did not reach the performance level required under Section 225A of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 and the Electoral Act 2022.
The plaintiffs say that the parties involved did not reach the minimum electoral performance necessary for the maintenance of their registration.
This includes winning at least 25 per cent of votes in a state during a presidential election or winning at least one elective seat at the national, state or local government levels.
They argued that the parties, despite their poor performance in the 2023 general elections and the subsequent by-elections, remain on the INEC register.
The Attorney General’s office, which has supported the plaintiff’s stance in court papers, has said INEC is violating its constitutional duty to hold such parties.
“INEC will keep on violating its constitutional duty unless the court intervenes,” the AGF said.
“The right to operate as a political party is not absolute and must be in conformity with the provisions of the Constitution,” he added.
The plaintiffs argued that the word “shall” in the Constitution creates a mandatory duty on INEC to deregister underperforming parties.
They argued that not doing so is a continuing breach of constitutional obligations.
Apart from deregistration, the plaintiffs also sought the court’s restraining order on the affected parties from participating in future elections or engaging in political activities such as campaigns, rallies and primaries.
They also sought an order of injunction restraining the INEC from recognising or dealing with the parties unless they comply with the constitutional requirements.
“This is a public interest litigation to protect the sanctity of democracy,” the Attorney General said.
“Allowing parties that are not performing well to stay registered contributes to ballot congestion, increases the cost of elections and undermines accountability,” he said.
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