The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has raised an alarm over an alleged plot by federal authorities to pressure Justice Nwite into recusing himself from the party’s leadership suit to allow for the reassignment of the case to a “pliable” judge.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the federal government of attempting to interfere in its ongoing leadership legal battle with Nafiu Bala Gombe, alleging a “disturbing plot” to compromise the judiciary. In a statement released by the National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party claimed that external forces are mounting pressure on Justice Nwite of the Federal High Court to recuse himself. The ADC asserts that this maneuver is designed to have the case reassigned to a judge perceived as more “politically compliant,” which the party describes as a direct assault on the integrity of the judicial system and a dangerous attempt to weaponize state institutions against the opposition.
The party raised concerns over what it termed “unusual haste” in the scheduling of proceedings, noting that the matter was fixed for Friday, May 8, 2026, despite the Certified True Copy (CTC) of a relevant Supreme Court judgment not yet being formally communicated to the trial court. ADC said, “Information available to our Legal Team indicates that despite the fact that the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Supreme Court judgment has not yet been released or formally communicated to the trial court, the matter has curiously been fixed before Justice Nwite for May 8, 2026. We have credible reasons to believe that this unusual haste is part of a calculated scheme to force Justice Nwite into recusing himself, thereby creating an opening for the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to transfer the matter to judges allegedly considered more amenable to political influence.”
The opposition party further maintained that any move to remove the case from Justice Nwite would violate directives from both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, which had previously ordered an accelerated hearing by the substantive trial judge. The ADC warned that administrative manipulation, intimidation, or coordinated pressure against the presiding judge amounts to a deliberate interference in the administration of justice. Consequently, the party called on the National Judicial Council (NJC) and the Chief Justice of Nigeria to intervene urgently, stating that they must “halt this dangerous descent into judicial compromise” to ensure the case is decided on its merits rather than political expediency.
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