Get Guardian on GoogleThe New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has cautioned Nigerians against blaming President Bola Tinubu and the Presidency for the Federal High Court judgment invalidating the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) led by former Senate President David Mark, and affecting the emergence of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general elections.
The party said political sentiments and comments on social media would not alter judicial decisions, insisting that those who instituted the court action were Nigerians entitled to exercise their legal rights.
The NNPP also urged Nigerians to examine the judgment objectively rather than attribute unfavourable court decisions against opposition parties to alleged interference by the Presidency.
This position was disclosed in a statement on Monday by the party’s Board of Trustees Chairman and founder, Dr Boniface Aniebonam.
Aniebonam said there was an unfortunate tendency among Nigerians to assess judicial decisions mainly from the perspective of their political consequences, noting that judges were often praised when their judgments favoured particular interests but accused of political bias when the outcomes went against them.
He said a judgment with political consequences did not automatically mean it was politically procured, adding that an outcome affecting the political fortunes of a prominent aspirant was not evidence that the Presidency engineered it.
“If there is evidence of executive interference or judicial compromise, it should be presented and subjected to appropriate scrutiny. But political suspicion must not be elevated into fact simply because respected commentators repeat it.
“There is a fundamental distinction between questioning the reasoning of a judgment and questioning the integrity of the judicial officer who delivered it. The former is legitimate legal criticism; the latter requires credible evidence,” he said.
The Federal High Court in Abuja had, on November 5, nullified the leadership of the ADC led by Mark and invalidated decisions taken by the party under the leadership, including the emergence of Atiku as its presidential candidate for the 2027 elections.
Justice Peter Lifu, in his judgment, declared the Mark-led Caretaker Committee illegal and nullified the process through which it conducted the party’s presidential primary.
The court also nullified the emergence of former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, as National Secretary, alongside the appointments of other national officers and the nominations of candidates presented by the party for the 2027 elections.
The judgment followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, instituted by a former ADC Deputy National Chairman (North-East), Nafiu Bala Gombe, who challenged the process through which Mark and other members of the caretaker committee assumed control of the party.
Aniebonam advised the Mark-led ADC leadership to pursue available legal remedies up to the Supreme Court or seek a stay of execution of the judgment to preserve its chances of participating in the forthcoming elections.
He recalled that the NNPP had also been involved in prolonged legal battles over its leadership but did not blame the Presidency for the challenges.
According to him, the party pursued its cases until the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) complied with court orders and recognised what he described as its genuine leadership.
He said internal disagreements were inevitable in political parties, particularly after primaries, urging party leaders to develop mechanisms for resolving disputes before they degenerated into prolonged litigation.
“In all political parties, some people will always feel aggrieved after internal primaries. The onus is on leadership to find ways to resolve their internal crisis and, if possible, stop the matter from litigation.
“Once the matter goes to court, it can go either way. We must learn to remain broad-minded on these issues and not always look for the ‘fall guy’,” he said.
The NNPP leader also cautioned the media against providing platforms for inflammatory statements capable of provoking negative reactions among Nigerians and attracting unfavourable attention from the international community.
He expressed concern that repeated attacks on the judiciary whenever court decisions went against particular interests could further damage the country’s image globally.
“Each judgment delivered in Nigeria has those it did not favour calling out the judiciary,” he said.
Aniebonam urged political leaders, the Nigerian elite and citizens to exercise restraint in their public statements ahead of the 2027 general elections, stressing the need to prioritise national unity and peace.
He called on all concerned to engage in constructive discussions on political and legal issues rather than resort to personal attacks.
