ADC leadership crisis: Court to hear Gombe’s suit against David Mark

The Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled Friday, May 8, for the hearing of a suit filed by Nafiu-Bala Gombe against David Mark, former Senate President and other leaders of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) over the party’s leadership crisis.

The matter, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, is before Justice Emeka Nwite.

Court documents seen on Wednesday showed that hearing notices had been issued to parties in the case following an application by counsel to the plaintiff, Luka Haruna, SAN, seeking an accelerated hearing.

In a letter dated May 5 and addressed to the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court, Haruna, alongside Robert Emukpoeruo, SAN, and Lukman O. Fagbemi, SAN, informed the court that the Supreme Court had dismissed an interlocutory appeal filed by Mark on April 30, 2026.

The lawyers urged the court to fix a date for accelerated hearing of the suit in line with the earlier judgment of the Court of Appeal.

“We hereby apply for a date for the accelerated hearing of this matter in accordance with the judgment of the Court of Appeal,” the letter stated.

Justice Nwite had on April 14 adjourned the case indefinitely after Gombe requested that proceedings be put on hold pending the determination of Mark’s appeal at the Supreme Court.

At the time, the court declined an application by the Mark-led ADC leadership seeking the hearing of all pending motions, including the substantive suit.

Gombe, a former national deputy chairman of the ADC, is seeking an order restraining Mark, the party’s national chairman, and Rauf Aregbesola, the national secretary, from presenting themselves as leaders of the party.

The plaintiff contends that the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola as ADC leaders contravened the party’s constitution and provisions of the Electoral Act.

The defendants in the suit are the ADC, David Mark, Rauf Aregbesola, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and former ADC national chairman Ralph Nwosu.

Nwosu had stepped down to pave the way for Mark’s emergence as leader of the party.