The leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Seriake Dickson, has rejected the Federal High Court judgment affecting the party’s legal status, describing the ruling as illegal and politically motivated.
Reacting on Friday to the judgment delivered by Justice Isah Dashen of the Federal High Court in Lokoja, Dickson insisted the ruling lacked legal merit and vowed that the party would challenge it through every available legal channel.
According to him, the court’s decision was aimed at undermining the credibility and growing influence of the NDC, warning that it poses a serious threat to Nigeria’s multi-party democracy.
“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,” Dickson said.
He described the judgment as anti-democratic, arguing that it was designed to narrow Nigeria’s democratic space and weaken opposition politics.
Dickson disclosed that the party had already assembled a team of lawyers to immediately seek the reversal of the judgment. He urged members, supporters and candidates to remain calm and continue their political activities, expressing confidence that the legal challenge would not derail the party’s preparations for future elections.
He also questioned the legal standing of the applicant, the Peace Movement Party, arguing that it is neither a registered political party nor one of the associations that applied for registration with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in 2025.
According to him, the association had no legal interest in the matter and should not have been a party to the suit.
Dickson further alleged that unnamed political interests threatened by the rapid growth of the NDC were responsible for the court action, claiming the party’s progress within just five months had unsettled its opponents.
Reaffirming the party’s commitment to strengthening multi-party democracy, Dickson maintained that the NDC would pursue all judicial remedies to overturn what he described as a flawed judgment and continue its political activities across the country.
