ADC Chieftain Fined ₦100 Million After Abandoning Suit Against Judges
- A Federal High Court in Abuja has fined ADC chieftain Nkemakolam Ukandu N100 million for lack of diligent prosecution in a court case
- Justice Ibrahim dismissed Ukandu's suit against the NJC, Tsoho and Lifu over alleged judicial misconduct
- N50 million to be paid to each judge within 14 days following oral application by defence counsel
Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over 8 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues
FCT, Abuja - A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nkemakolam Ukandu, has been fined N100 million after striking out his suit alleging bias against the court’s Chief Judge, John Tsoho, and a judge of the court, Peter Lifu.
Ukandu, the ADC national welfare secretary, sued the National Judicial Council (NJC), Tsoho and Lifu over alleged disobedience to a court order.
Justice Salim Ibrahim of the Federal High Court in Abuja threw out the case on Monday for want of diligent prosecution.
The judge imposed the fine following an oral application by their lawyer, J. U. K. Igwe, calling for the striking of the suit and the N100 million fine.
Justice Ibrahim, in his ruling on Monday, July 6, 2026, imposed the N100 million fine as a retribution for the lack of diligent prosecution of the case.
As reported by Premium Times, the ADC chieftain will pay N50 million to each of Tosho and Lifu within 14 days.
The ADC chieftain had sought an order compelling the NJC to investigate allegations of corruption and abuse of judicial powers against Tsoho and Lifu.
The Punch reports that the suit arose from the leadership crisis rocking the ADC and was linked to a separate case filed by an aggrieved party member, Nafiu-Bala Gombe, challenging the David Mark-led interim leadership of the party.
According to court proceedings, neither Ukandu nor his lawyer appeared before the court from the time the case was assigned to Judge Ibrahim.
It was gathered that no lawyer appeared for Ukandu or the NJC when the suit came up on June 22, 2026
Igwe, however, announced his appearance for Messrs Tsoho and Mr Lifu.
Before adjourning the matter to 6 July (Monday), Judge Ibrahim warned that the suit would be dismissed for lack of diligent prosecution if the plaintiff or his lawyer again failed to appear.
Atiku Ally dumps ADC ahead of 2027
Recall that Aslam Aliyu, a key ally of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar in Zamfara state, resigned from ADC and joined the APC.
Aliyu cited the opposition's failure to present a credible governance blueprint as the reason for her defection.
The APC national chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda, welcomed Aliyu, saying she made the right switch to the ruling party.
Lawyer knocks INEC over ADC crisis
Meanwhile, Legit.ng also reported that Binzak Azeez, a lawyer, criticised INEC's decision on ADC leadership without court clarification.
The lawyer claimed that an external conspiracy fuels the ADC crisis involving political interests.
Azeez also warned that INEC's actions threaten Nigeria's democracy and called for judicial accountability.
Source: Legit.ng
