The Supreme Court of Nigeria on Wednesday reserved judgment in an appeal filed by former Senate President David Mark, challenging the jurisdiction of the court to intervene in the internal affairs of the African Democratic Congress.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Garba Mohammed, announced the decision after counsel representing all parties adopted their final written arguments.
Counsel to Mark, Jibrin Okutepa (SAN), argued that the matter had already been settled by a previous Supreme Court decision delivered on March 21, 2025, which held that courts lack jurisdiction over internal party affairs.
He urged the court to allow the appeal and declare that the Federal High Court in Abuja lacked jurisdiction to hear the suit.
However, counsel to the first respondent, Robert Emukpero, representing Nafiu Gombe, urged the court to dismiss the appeal, insisting that the lower court acted properly in holding that the case was premature.
The dispute arose from earlier proceedings at the Court of Appeal, where a panel dismissed Mark’s appeal on the grounds that it was filed without leave of the trial court and was therefore incompetent.
The appellate court had also ordered that the matter be returned to the trial court for accelerated hearing and directed all parties to maintain the status quo.
Following that ruling, the Independent National Electoral Commission withdrew recognition of the ADC leadership led by Mark, pending final determination of the case.
After listening to arguments from both sides, the Supreme Court reserved judgment, stating that a date for delivery of the verdict would be communicated to the parties.
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