Former Osun State Governor and National Secretary of the David Mark-led African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rauf Aregbesola, has appealed the Federal High Court judgment nullifying the party’s leadership, arguing that the court lacked jurisdiction to determine the dispute.
Aregbesola is asking the Court of Appeal to set aside the November 5, 2026, judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu in Abuja.
He has also filed a separate application seeking a stay of execution of the judgment pending the determination of his appeal.
In the notice of appeal filed on November 6 through his counsel, Mohammed Sheriff, SAN, Aregbesola challenged the decision invalidating his emergence as National Secretary and the resolutions reached at the ADC’s 99th National Executive Committee meeting.
The respondents in the appeal are Nafiu Bala Gombe, the ADC, Senator David Mark, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and former party National Chairman, Chief Raph Nwosu.
Aregbesola urged the appellate court to set aside the lower court’s decision on the grounds that it lacked jurisdiction over the dispute concerning his emergence and the validity of the party’s NEC resolutions.
He argued that the case involved the interpretation of the ADC constitution and the distinction between an election into a party office and an interim appointment to fill a vacancy.
His lawyer faulted the trial court’s reliance on Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act 2022 and Section 223(1)(a) of the 1999 Constitution, arguing that the provisions governing elections did not necessarily apply to an interim appointment permitted under Article 23(4) of the ADC constitution.
Aregbesola is also seeking an order setting aside the declaration that Gombe’s four-year tenure remained in force and that he was entitled to oversee the party’s affairs.
In the alternative, he asked the Court of Appeal to remit the affected claims to the Federal High Court for a fresh hearing before another judge, should it uphold the trial court’s jurisdiction but find a retrial necessary.
Stay of execution application
In a separate motion dated November 7, Aregbesola asked the Federal High Court to stay the enforcement of Orders 7 and 8 of the judgment pending the outcome of his appeal.
The application, filed in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, was supported by 12 grounds.
Sheriff argued that the appeal raised substantial legal and factual issues, including questions concerning the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court and the interpretation of the ADC constitution and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act.
The dispute was initiated by Gombe, who claimed that he was entitled to assume leadership of the ADC following the resignation of former National Chairman, Raph Nwosu.
Gombe asked the court to invalidate actions taken by the Mark-led leadership and restrain its members from presenting themselves as the party’s legitimate leaders.
Mark, Aregbesola and other defendants opposed the suit, arguing that Gombe was no longer the party’s Deputy National Chairman when Nwosu resigned.
Justice Lifu, however, ruled against the Mark-led leadership on November 5, nullifying its emergence and decisions taken under its authority.
Aregbesola’s appeal seeks to overturn that decision, while his application for a stay of execution seeks to suspend enforcement of the judgment pending the appellate court’s determination.
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