NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi has condemned a Federal High Court ruling that overturned his party’s registration, calling it “another setback for democracy” and warning that eroding public confidence in Nigeria’s institutions could have grave long-term consequences.
Peter Obi received the news mid-trip — and it clearly stung.
The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) was attending an event at Madonna University on Friday when word reached him that a Federal High Court in Lokoja had set aside the earlier judgment directing INEC to register his party. He had spent the day in Imo State — visiting the School of Nursing Sciences in Emekuku and celebrating the 80th birthday of Emeritus Archbishop of Owerri, Most Rev. Dr. Anthony Obinna — before the court delivered its blow.
Obi didn’t hold back.
In a statement posted on his Facebook page, the former Anambra governor described the ruling as yet another wound inflicted on Nigeria’s democratic fabric.
“This judgment represents another setback for our democracy and the institutions upon which our future depends,” he said.
According to Vanguard, for Obi, the ruling isn’t just a legal inconvenience for the NDC — it’s a symptom of a deeper rot. He warned that democratic institutions, particularly the legislature and judiciary, must remain fiercely independent if Nigeria’s democracy is to mean anything at all.
“It is regrettable that some who claim to champion democracy now appear determined to weaken the very institutions that sustain it. In doing so, they are undermining public confidence and endangering the future of millions of Nigerians,” Obi stated pointedly.
Anticipating accusations of self-interest, Obi was quick to frame his outrage as principled rather than personal — noting he had previously raised similar concerns when the African Democratic Congress (ADC) faced comparable institutional pressures.
It’s a credibility play, and a smart one. Obi has built his political brand on being the voice of institutional integrity in a system widely accused of running on patronage and manipulation.
But with his party’s registration now in legal limbo and the 2027 elections drawing closer, principle alone may not be enough. The NDC’s path to the ballot just got considerably more uncertain — and considerably more urgent.
NEWS NOW:
