The Kogi State High Court has dismissed a social media report claiming that it ordered the deregistration of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), describing the allegation as false and misleading.
In a statement issued on Thursday in Lokoja by the court’s Chief Information Officer, Saqeeb Saeed, the court said it had neither heard nor determined any case concerning the registration or deregistration of the NDC or any political party in Nigeria.
The court said it would ordinarily not have responded to the publication but decided to clarify the issue to prevent the public from being misled.
It said the report was accompanied by photographs of the Kogi State Chief Judge, Josiah Majebi, and former Governor Yahaya Bello, creating the impression that the alleged decision originated from the court.
According to the statement, the publication had the potential to damage the reputation of the judiciary and undermine public confidence in the institution.
The court advised members of the public and content creators to verify information before publishing reports, warning that false claims capable of tarnishing the image of judges or the judiciary would not be tolerated.
It urged the public to disregard the report and reaffirmed its commitment to delivering justice fairly and independently.
The clarification follows a recent ruling by Justice Isah Dashen of the Kogi State High Court in Lokoja, who reportedly set aside an earlier judgment that had affected the registration status of the NDC.
Justice Dashen ruled that all relevant parties must be given an opportunity to be heard before a final decision could be reached in the matter.
The judge upheld an application by the Peace Movement Party (PMP), holding that the party was a necessary party to the suit. He said the earlier judgment was constitutionally defective because interested parties were not heard before the decision was delivered.
The court consequently restored the status quo pending the determination of the substantive suit and ordered that the case should proceed afresh with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), PMP and NDC as parties.
