ADC’s mass exodus warning is gaining renewed attention following the defection of a Kano State House of Assembly member to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), amid a Federal High Court ruling that has stirred fresh political uncertainty within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
News Point Nigeria reports that member representing Gwale Constituency in the Kano State House of Assembly, Abdulmajid Isa Umar Mai Rigar Fata, has defected from the All Progressives Congress to the Nigeria Democratic Congress.
The lawmaker represents Gwale Local Government Area, the home local government of Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
He was formally received on Thursday by former Kano State governor and NDC leader, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, at his Maitama residence in Abuja.
Kwankwaso, who remains a dominant political force in Kano’s political landscape, welcomed the new entrants and described their decision to join the party as a significant boost to its grassroots strength in the state.
Mai Rigar Fata was first elected into the Assembly in 2023 under the platform of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, aligned at the time with Kwankwaso, before later following Governor Yusuf to the APC.
His latest defection reportedly followed his failure to secure the APC ticket to return to the State Assembly.
Also joining the NDC were Kabiru Sani Auwal Obi, a former Vice Chairman of Gwale Local Government, and Mahadi Isa Umar.
The development comes against the backdrop of a Federal High Court judgment that has further heightened political tension, after it nullified timelines issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission for the conduct of party primaries and nomination of candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.
News Point Nigeria reports that Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that INEC’s guidelines imposed restrictive timeframes on political parties for the conduct of primaries and other pre-election activities, contrary to the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026.
According to the court, INEC lacked the statutory authority to fix or prescribe the timeframe within which political parties must conduct their primaries for the nomination of candidates for the 2027 general elections.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/517/2026, was filed by the Youth Party against INEC as the sole defendant.
Reacting to the judgment, Bolaji Abdullahi, spokesperson of the African Democratic Congress, said the ruling vindicated the party’s earlier objections to key aspects of INEC’s guidelines when they were issued.
According to the ADC, the party had specifically opposed the timelines relating to membership registration and the conduct of party primaries.
“The decision of the Court on these issues, including those that directly contradict the Constitution, is therefore a welcome vindication of our position,” the party stated.
The ADC further described the judgment as a positive development that promotes freedom of association, stressing that it removed what it called impediments placed on politicians seeking alternative political platforms to contest elections.
“We believed at the time that that particular restriction was designed to prevent people from leaving the ruling party, APC,” the party said.
“Now that the court has ruled against it, we are sure that, in the coming days, we will witness a mass exodus from the ruling party.”