Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of overstepping its legal authority by removing Senator David Mark’s name as National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) from its official records. The development followed INEC’s April 1 announcement that it would no longer recognize Mark’s leadership or the faction led by Nafiu Bala, citing a Court of Appeal directive to maintain the status quo ante bellum — the situation before a legal suit was filed in the Federal High Court. Atiku, speaking during a BBC Newsday interview aired on Saturday and monitored by Punch, condemned the electoral body’s actions as unlawful and politically motivated.
He emphasized that INEC’s actions contradict established Supreme Court jurisprudence, which consistently holds that internal affairs of political parties are exclusively the domain of the parties themselves and cannot be interfered with by external agencies. “The commission has not acted according to law because we have a number of cases decided even by the Supreme Court that the internal affairs of political parties are not the prerogative of any agency other than the political parties themselves, but they have ignored the ruling of the highest court in the land,” Atiku said.
Atiku’s comments come amid growing concerns over the independence of Nigeria’s electoral and judicial institutions. His remarks highlight the tension between electoral bodies and political actors, especially during periods of party realignment and legal disputes. As Nigeria continues to navigate its political landscape, the role of INEC in party governance remains a critical issue for democratic accountability. The outcome of this dispute may set a precedent for how electoral bodies handle internal party conflicts in the future.
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