The Supreme Court of Nigeria has set aside a controversial “status quo ante bellum” order issued in the prolonged leadership dispute within the African Democratic Congress, ruling that such preservative directives cannot remain valid after proceedings have been concluded.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Mohammed Garba held that while courts have inherent powers to issue preservative orders to protect the subject matter of litigation, those powers are limited to ongoing proceedings and cannot extend beyond final determination of a case.
The apex court ruled that once proceedings are “fully, conclusively and finally concluded,” there is nothing left for any court to preserve, rendering the earlier order legally unsustainable.
The case stems from a long-running internal dispute over the ADC’s leadership structure, including competing claims over party congresses and appointments by rival factions.
The Supreme Court also examined the procedural basis of the appeal, holding that the reliance on Section 241(1)(f)(ii) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria was misplaced. The court found that the trial judge did not grant or refuse an injunction but merely issued interim procedural directives.
Justice Garba further stated that where grounds of appeal are not purely points of law, obtaining leave of court is a mandatory condition precedent for a valid appeal. He stressed that a defective notice of appeal affects jurisdiction and renders the entire appeal incompetent.
Despite these findings, the court proceeded to evaluate the lower court’s preservative orders and ultimately held that maintaining the “status quo ante bellum” after the conclusion of proceedings was unnecessary and could not be sustained in law.
The Supreme Court accordingly allowed the appeal, set aside the contested order, and directed that any pending processes before the lower court be determined strictly in accordance with the law.
The ruling is expected to have implications for how political disputes involving internal party leadership crises are managed in Nigerian courts going forward.
