ABUJA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s Supreme Court set aside a status quo ante bellum order regarding the leadership crisis within the African Democratic Congress on Thursday, April 30, 2026.
Okay News reports that Justice Mohammed Garba delivered the lead judgment nullifying the preservative directive that sustained the existing leadership structure between rival factions.
The court determined that preservative orders are intended to protect the subject matter of ongoing litigation and prevent parties from creating a fait accompli. Justice Garba said that such orders cannot remain valid once proceedings have been “fully, conclusively and finally concluded.”
The judgment established that a court must only exercise these powers during live proceedings. Justice Garba said that when a case is “fully, faithfully, conclusively and finally concluded,” there would be “nothing left for that court to preserve.”
The ruling addressed the legal basis for the appeal, with the court finding that Section 241(1)(f)(ii) of the 1999 Constitution did not apply. The trial judge had issued procedural directives rather than granting or refusing an application for injunction.
The court noted that obtaining leave was a “condition precedent” to file the appeal because the grounds were not entirely based on points of law. The justices directed that all pending processes before the lower court be determined in accordance with the law.
