The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been given a three-day deadline by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Youth Wing to restore the party’s 2025-recognized leadership or face widespread public outcry.
The ADC National Youth Leader, Balarabe Rufa’i, told reporters on Monday at the party’s national headquarters in Abuja that INEC was subverting democracy and operating outside its constitutional authority.
According to Rufa’i, Nigeria is “under democratic siege,” with institutions designed to protect the people’s will being undermined and used as weapons against democratic ideals.
He linked the problem to a meeting of the National Executive Committee (NEC) on July 29, 2025, at which the party disbanded its National Working Committee and installed David Mark as its new leader. He said that INEC had first confirmed and formally acknowledged the result in September 2025 without any disagreement.
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“Months later, individuals who had already resigned resurfaced to challenge a process they had no legal standing in,” Rufa’i said, adding that despite a Court of Appeal directive to maintain the last uncontested position, INEC allegedly ignored the order and acted on pending motions and non-binding communications.
He argued that INEC lacked the constitutional authority to interpret court rulings, describing its actions as “complicity, partisanship, and institutional sabotage”.
The National Assembly was urged by the ADC youth leader to look into the issue immediately and take appropriate action, including as removing the INEC Chairman. In order to avoid what he called manipulation, he also called on the court to reaffirm its authority as the only body that may interpret the law.
He reiterated the party’s position and warned that any attempt to change it without a final court ruling would be “illegal, null, and void.” He declared that the leadership produced at the July 2025 NEC meeting remained the only legitimate authority inside the ADC.
On INEC’s official website, the group listed their demands, which included the commission’s public apology, the prompt reinstatement of the David Mark-led leadership, and a pledge to preserve neutrality and the rule of law.
Rufa’i also urged Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to abstain from any acts that would undermine opposition parties, cautioning that doing so would jeopardise Nigeria’s democracy.
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He threatened to launch widespread, nonviolent protests, including the occupation of INEC offices in all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, if compliance was not achieved within 72 hours.
“We will not retreat, we will not be intimidated, and we will not be silenced. This is bigger than ADC. This is about Nigeria,” he said.
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