Get Guardian on GoogleThe African Democratic Congress has demanded the immediate release of the certified copy of a judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, saying its lawyers had paid the required fee but were yet to obtain the ruling.
The party made the demand in a statement signed by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication, ADC Presidential Campaign Council, on Monday.
The ADC said the judgment was particularly important because it concerns the leadership of the party and the rights of its members, arguing that the affected parties could not properly respond to the decision or pursue available legal remedies without access to the official record.
According to the party, Justice Lifu declared in open court that copies of the judgment were ready for collection.
It said counsel representing the first defendant subsequently filed a formal application for a certified true copy of the judgment on November 6, 2026, and paid the assessed fee.
The party added that counsel representing the third defendant had applied for the judgment a day earlier, on November 5, the same day the ruling was delivered.
The ADC said both applications bore the Federal High Court’s “PAID” stamp, indicating that the required fees had been settled.
Despite this, the party said the applicants had yet to receive the certified judgment.
The party described the situation as more than a routine administrative delay, arguing that withholding the ruling prevented the affected parties from knowing the precise orders made by the court and from taking informed steps to challenge or respond to the decision.
The ADC said that where a judge had publicly declared that a judgment was ready, parties who had complied with the requirements for obtaining the certified copy should not be left without access to the document.
The party said the issue was particularly significant because of the political implications of the case and the need for affected parties to exercise their constitutional and legal rights through the courts.
It questioned why the judgment had not been released despite the applications and payments being acknowledged by the court.
“If the ruling is sound, there is no justification for keeping it out of reach,” the party said, calling on the Federal High Court to release the judgment immediately and explain why the paid applications had remained unanswered.
The ADC also recalled that it had previously objected to Justice Lifu presiding over the matter.
According to the party, its National Secretary, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, had raised concerns about the judge’s impartiality, citing previous appellate decisions which, in the ADC’s view, raised questions about his competence and neutrality.
The party said those concerns had been formally placed on record before the court.
It argued that the continued inability of the affected parties to obtain the judgment had compounded those concerns and created a need for greater transparency over the handling of the matter.
The ADC also drew attention to the timing of the judgment, saying it was delivered days after the party launched its campaign in Sokoto.
The party questioned whether the sequence of events could give rise to concerns about the political implications of the ruling and the subsequent difficulty in obtaining the certified copy.
The ADC, however, did not provide an explanation from the Federal High Court for why the certified copies had not been released as of the time of its statement.
The party called for the immediate release of the certified judgment and a public explanation for the delay.
It warned that continued withholding of the document could further undermine public confidence in the judicial process, particularly where the judgment concerns the leadership of a political party and the rights of its members.
The party said it would pursue all lawful avenues available to challenge the ruling and address what it described as an obstruction of its right to access and respond to the court’s decision.
The ADC also said it intended to place the full record of the matter before the appropriate authorities and ensure that Nigerians were informed about the circumstances surrounding the judgment and its release.
It maintained that no political party, public official or judicial officer should be beyond scrutiny where citizens’ rights and the integrity of the electoral process were involved.
The party’s statement came amid ongoing political activity ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the ADC insisting that it would not be intimidated or prevented from exercising its legal rights.
The party said it expected the judgment to be released without further delay and that any concerns arising from the decision would be addressed through the appropriate legal and institutional channels.
