A chieftain of the Labour Party, Abayomi Arabambi, has warned that any court judgment ordering the deregistration of five political parties could plunge Nigeria into political instability and threaten the country’s democratic process.

Arabambi spoke on Saturday during a press briefing in Abuja ahead of the June 5 judgment scheduled by the Federal High Court in a suit seeking the deregistration of the African Democratic Congress, Action Alliance, Action Peoples Party, Accord Party and Zenith Labour Party.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2025, was instituted by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators against the Independent National Electoral Commission, the Attorney General of the Federation and the five political parties.

Justice Peter Odo Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had fixed June 5, 2026, for judgment after dismissing applications for stay of proceedings and joinder filed by interested parties, including Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke and Arabambi.

Speaking with journalists, Arabambi criticised those backing the deregistration suit, describing them as enemies of democracy seeking to destabilise the nation.

“Those pushing for the deregistration of these political parties are pursuing chaos. They want political insurrection. They are enemies of our democratic order,” he said.

Arabambi also questioned the legal standing of the plaintiffs, arguing that the National Forum of Former Legislators lacked the authority to represent Nigerians in the matter.

According to him, the group was established in 2025, after the 2023 general elections that formed the basis of the dispute, and had not shown evidence that Nigerians authorised it to file the suit.

The LP vice chairman (Southwest) expressed dissatisfaction with the court’s refusal to join him as an interested party in the matter despite his submissions challenging the plaintiffs’ locus standi.

He revealed that he had already filed an appeal against the ruling dismissing his joinder application.

Justice Lifu had ruled on May 20 that the separate applications filed by Arabambi, Governor Adeleke, and two others were unnecessary, as their political parties were already parties to the case.

The court also dismissed an application for a stay of proceedings because the matter had reached an advanced stage and should not be delayed ahead of future elections.

Counsel to the plaintiffs, Yakubu Abdullahi Ruba (SAN), is seeking an order compelling the Independent National Electoral Commission to deregister the affected parties for allegedly failing to meet constitutional requirements on electoral spread and performance.

According to the suit, the parties failed to secure at least 25 per cent of the votes in any state during the presidential elections, as required under Section 225 of the Constitution, and also failed to win elective offices.

However, the affected parties have opposed the suit.

Arabambi warned that deregistering the parties could have grave political consequences for the country.

“Any judgment made on June 5 to deregister the ADC, AA, APP, Accord Party and Zenith Labour Party will undermine the unity of Nigeria, halt our democracy and precipitate instability,” he said.

He further claimed that the suit was designed to weaken opposition parties and influence future electoral contests, including the re-election bids of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Adeleke.

Arabambi urged the court to safeguard democratic participation and avoid actions that could be viewed as suppressing opposition voices.

He also called on the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the National Judicial Council to scrutinise the proceedings and review all processes filed in the case.

The judgment, expected on June 5, is anticipated to determine the fate of the five political parties and could have far-reaching implications for Nigeria’s political landscape ahead of future elections. (Saturday PUNCH)

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