By Obinna Uballa
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has withdrawn its recognition of Senator David Mark and former Osun State governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, as the National Chairman and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) respectively.
The electoral body announced the decision on Wednesday following its review of ongoing litigation over the leadership of the party.
In a statement posted on its official X handle, INEC said the action was taken in compliance with the ruling of the Court of Appeal in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/145/2026 involving Senator David Mark and Hon. Nafiu Bala Gombe.
According to the commission, the names of the National Working Committee (NWC) members led by Mark, which were uploaded to its portal on September 9, 2025, seven days after the suit challenging their leadership was filed, will now be removed.
“Since the names of the current National Working Committee members led by Senator David Mark were uploaded on 9th September 2025 by INEC, seven days after the suit was instituted, the names would be removed from the INEC portal pursuant to the order of the Court of Appeal,” the commission stated.
INEC also said it would refrain from taking any action that could prejudice the ongoing court proceedings, in line with the preservatory orders issued by the appellate court.
“The parties are hereby directed to maintain the status quo ante bellum and shall refrain from taking any step or doing any act capable of foisting a fait accompli on the court,” the commission quoted from the Court of Appeal ruling.
However, INEC declined the request by the plaintiff’s solicitors to allow Hon. Nafiu Bala Gombe to take over the leadership of the party pending the determination of the case before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The commission further declared that it would not receive communications from, or engage with, any of the factions laying claim to the ADC leadership until the substantive suit is resolved.
It also announced that it would not monitor or recognise any meeting, congress, or convention convened by any group in the party during the pendency of the case.
INEC explained that it received two separate letters from the legal representatives of the opposing factions.
While the law firm of Suleiman Usman SAN & Co. urged the commission not to recognise Gombe as acting national chairman due to the pending case before the Federal High Court, Summit Law Chambers, representing Gombe, demanded enforcement of the Court of Appeal judgment.
The latter requested the commission to cease recognising Mark and Aregbesola, remove their names from its portal, and refrain from dealing with them pending the determination of the substantive suit.
The commission also noted that Summit Law Chambers had earlier accused it of acting in disobedience of the court’s orders by inviting Mark’s faction to a political parties’ meeting on March 24, 2026, and monitoring a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the group the following day.
Providing background to the dispute, INEC said the current NWC led by Mark emerged after members of the Ralph Okey Nwosu-led executive committee resigned and ratified the appointment of a new leadership during a National Executive Council meeting on July 29, 2025.
However, Gombe, who was the party’s Vice National Chairman, rejected the development, insisting that he never resigned and should automatically assume leadership following Nwosu’s exit, in accordance with the party’s constitution.
He subsequently instituted a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja on September 2, 2025, seeking an order restraining Mark’s group from parading themselves as leaders of the party and asking the court to compel INEC to recognise him as acting national chairman.
The Court of Appeal, in its judgment delivered on March 12, 2026, dismissed an interlocutory appeal filed by Mark challenging the jurisdiction of the trial court and ordered an accelerated hearing of the case.
It also directed all parties to maintain the status quo and refrain from actions that could undermine the determination of the substantive suit before the Federal High Court.
The appellate court further awarded a cost of N2 million in favour of the first respondent
