The Independent National Electoral Commission has updated its official website to reflect the National Working Committee of the African Democratic Congress led by former Senate President, David Mark.
The update, which was effected around 9:58 p.m. on Thursday, also lists key members of the party’s leadership, including Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary, Mani Ibrahim Ahmad as National Treasurer, Akibu Dalhatu as Financial Secretary, and Oserheimen Osunbor as National Legal Adviser.
The development comes shortly after the Supreme Court delivered a judgment in the leadership dispute rocking the party, setting aside an earlier ruling of the Court of Appeal that had directed all parties to maintain the status quo ante bellum.
In a unanimous judgment, the apex court ordered all parties involved in the dispute to return to the Federal High Court for the determination of the substantive matter.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba affirmed that the appellate court acted rightly in asking the defendants to justify why the ex parte application should not be granted.
The crisis in the party began after Nafiu Bala Gombe, an aggrieved member, approached the court to challenge Mark’s emergence as national chairman and sought an order restraining his faction from parading itself as the party’s leadership.
INEC had earlier delisted the Mark-led executive from its website in compliance with the appellate court’s directive, maintaining that it would not recognise any faction pending the resolution of the dispute.
However, Thursday’s update signals a new twist, with the commission now reflecting the Mark-led structure on its portal despite the ongoing legal battle.
