Seriake Dickson, national leader of the Nigerian Democratic
Congress (NDC), says the party is under attack from external forces aggrieved
by its rapid progress but will prevail.
Dickson is reacting to the judgement of the federal high
court in Lokoja, Kogi state, that set aside an earlier order directing the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register the NDC as a
political party.
The court vacated its December 10, 2025, judgement
compelling INEC to register the NDC as a political party.
Delivering the ruling in the suit marked FHC/LKJ/CS/49/2025,
Isah Dashen, the presiding judge, held that the earlier judgement was delivered
without hearing all necessary parties, rendering the proceedings
constitutionally defective.
According to NAN, the ruling followed an application by the
Peace Movement Party (PMP), which argued that it had a legal interest in the
matter and ought to have been joined in the suit before the judgement was
delivered.
The judge also held that material facts were not disclosed
during the earlier proceedings and ordered that the substantive suit begin
afresh with INEC, the PMP and the NDC joined as parties.
‘THE ORDER WILL STAND’
Dickson described the court order as lacking legal merit and
was aimed at undermining the party’s progress.
“All I can say is that the order lacks legal merit and is
intended to affect the foundational credibility and efforts of our party. The
order is illegal and will not stand,” he said.
According to him, the ruling was “against multi-party
democracy, anti-democratic in nature, and aimed at narrowing and stifling the
democratic space.”
The NDC national chairman said the party had assembled a
team of lawyers to challenge the ruling and urged members and supporters to
remain calm.
The former Bayelsa governor alleged that the application
that led to the ruling was filed by “an unregistered association” which,
according to him, had no legal interest in the case.
“We are not naive to expect that the tremendous progress we
have achieved in the last five months would go without attack,” he said.
“So, we know where this is coming from. It is coming from
those who are shocked by the progress the NDC has made within such a short
period as a result of our hard work and commitment to deepening multi-party
democracy.
“We will not allow this to slow us down or break our spirit.
The struggle must continue.”
He further accused the judge who gave the ruling of
committing a legal error, saying the party would pursue all available judicial
remedies.
“We will use appropriate judicial channels to correct the
judicial anomaly that occurred under the watch of Honourable Justice Dashen. He
has clearly erred in law, and we will take steps to correct it,” he said.
Dickson also sought to reassure supporters, insisting that
the party remained on course despite the setback.
“We are under attack, as I have repeatedly said we should
prepare for challenges such as this. But thereafter, we shall win,” he said.
He added that the ruling had triggered increased support for
the party, claiming that “thousands of Nigerians” registered as NDC members in
solidarity following the court decision.
“I sincerely thank Nigerians for the confidence they
continue to repose in the NDC. Your support, encouragement, and belief in our
vision only strengthen our resolve to continue the struggle to deepen
multi-party democracy in Nigeria,” Dickson said.
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