National leader of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), Senator Seriake Dickson, has said the party has not been deregistered, and its candidates will be on the ballot in the 2027 general election.
Dickson stated this while speaking on Channels Television programme, Sunday Politics, against the backdrop of the Federal High Court, Lokoja judgement, which set aside an earlier ruling that compelled the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register the party.
The court, in a judgment delivered by Justice Isah Dashen on Friday, nullified the 10 December 2025 ruling that directed INEC to register the NDC, following an application brought by the Peace Movement Party (PMP), which argued that it was not joined in the original proceedings despite having a legal interest in the matter.
The judge said that all parties with vested interests should have been allowed to participate in the case and consequently ordered that the matter be heard afresh with the relevant parties properly joined.
But the NDC leader said the party is appealing the judgment he described as irregular.
The former Bayelsa state governor appealed to all party candidates, stakeholders, and members to remain calm, as there was no cause for alarm.
He said the party conducted a valid primary election from the State Houses of Assembly and the National Assembly, through governorship, to the presidential, which was monitored by INEC, with both the flag-bearer and his running mate nominated.
“I assure all our candidates and members that nominations are done at the primaries that took place at the various levels.
The submission to INEC is an administrative procedure. So, the DC is a party.
The court itself did not direct its deregistration, and no step has been taken to that effect.
“As soon as possible, as the party has said, once the appeal is lodged and the necessary papers are filed, it is a matter that will go to the highest levels to set aside the irregular judgment.
“Irregular because by our hierarchy of courts and by judicial precedence and by all that we know, the doctrine of finality of courts, once a high court has given a judgment on a matter, the court is sufficient… Anyone who is complaining: someone says it’s an untrusted party; you file a suit, or you go, ask for leave, and go on appeal. But all f that has not taken place. And it’s unfortunate.
“And we expect that the judicial system will correct this anomaly. And the judicial system, by the way, shall work. It presupposes that judges and people who sit in judgment will make mistakes. That’s why you have a hierarchy of courts.
“So, if a judge makes a mistake, it’s well within his area. I mean, the judge is at liberty to err. Still, ten years are left for the aggrieved party, in this case, for the party that is complaining, we and all our candidates, over a thousand of them, from all the assembly, all the governors, all the national assembly members, and then our presidential candidates, everybody has now acquired a valid vested legal interest because they have already been nominated.
“So, we expect that the appeal process and the applications that will follow, including the ones that will be launched before that same court, in accordance with procedure and precedence, will correct this matter. So, we are on course.
