ADC Raises Alarm Over Alleged Scheme to Force Judge Off Nafiu Bala Case
Africa Democratic Congress alleges plot by government agents to recuse Justice Nwite, warns of a grave threat to Nigeria’s democracy.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has sounded a high-level alarm over what it describes as a plot orchestrated by government operatives to have the trial judge overseeing a sensitive party leadership suit step down from the case.
In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC accused unnamed government officials of mounting intense pressure on Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja to recuse himself. According to the opposition party, the scheme is designed to clear the way for the matter to be reassigned to a different judge, whom the party claims would be more favorable to certain political interests. The ADC described the maneuver as a direct assault on the integrity of the judiciary.
“This sinister plot, if allowed to stand, represents a direct assault on the integrity of the judiciary and a dangerous escalation in the ongoing attempts to weaponize state institutions against the opposition,” a segment of the ADC statement read.
The crux of the controversy appears to be the procedural progression of the case. The ADC noted that although the Certified True Copy (CTC) of a relevant Supreme Court judgment has not yet been formally released or transmitted to the lower court, the matter has nonetheless been scheduled for hearing before Justice Nwite. The party views this accelerated timeline as suspicious, suggesting it may be a calculated attempt to force the judge into an uncomfortable position that would trigger his recusal.
The underlying suit involves a leadership tussle within the ADC, with the party’s former National Deputy Chairman, Nafiu Bala Gombe, locked in a legal battle with Senator David Mark and other party officials. Justice Nwite had previously adjourned the case pending the outcome of an appeal at the Supreme Court. However, following a recent directive from the apex court, the trial was set to resume.
Reacting to the allegations, the ADC has called for immediate intervention from the National Judicial Council (NJC), the Chief Justice of Nigeria, and the international community. The party further warned that the desperate search for “friendly courts” and “convenient judges” poses a grave threat not only to opposition parties but to the very survival of constitutional democracy. The party stressed that judicial recusal is an extraordinary measure defined by law and not a tool to be manipulated for political convenience.
Emphasizing the stakes of the matter, the ADC recalled the country’s dark political history, warning against a repeat of past judicial controversies which contributed to the collapse of democratic order in the First and Second Republics and the subversion of the June 12 mandate.
