The Supreme Court today set aside the order for status quo ante bellum made by the Court of Appeal in Abuja in the leadership dispute of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
The judgement effectively retores the David Mark-led executive from its delisting by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a unanimous verdict on Thursday, the five-member panel of justices led by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, held that the order by the Court of Appeal was unnecessary.
The apex court further held that the appeal on ‘jurisdiction’ was filed on an order ex parte inviting parties to show cause without first obtaining leave of the appellate court.
The Court also ordered the return of the leadership dispute rocking the ADC to the Federal High Court for determination on the merits.
The court held that the anti-bellum order earlier granted by the lower court was “unnecessary, improper and unwarranted.”
It also faulted the interim order issued in the course of the dispute, stressing that such a directive ought not to have been made in the circumstances of the case.
Justice Garuba, while delivering the lead judgment, held that the proper course was for the substantive issues surrounding the ADC leadership crisis to be fully heard and determined by the Federal High Court.
