On Tuesday, the Federal High Court in Abuja issued a warning that a lawsuit targeting Chief Judge Justice John Tsoho and Justice Peter Lifu could be dismissed due to a lack of diligent prosecution. Presiding Justice Salim Ibrahim stated that if the plaintiff, African Democratic Congress (ADC) official Nkemakolam Ukandu, fails to provide legal representation at the next hearing, the case will be struck out.
Ukandu had initiated the lawsuit, identified as FHC/ABJ/CS/1165/2026, against the National Judicial Council (NJC), Justice Tsoho, and Justice Lifu. He alleges corruption, judicial abuse, and bias regarding a leadership dispute within the ADC. During Tuesday’s proceedings, only counsel for the two judges was present; neither Ukandu nor the NJC had representatives in the courtroom.
John Igwe (SAN), representing the two judges, noted that the plaintiff had failed to appear during previous sessions. He also informed the court that attempts to serve the plaintiff with legal documents were unsuccessful because the address provided for the plaintiff’s lawyer could not be found. Justice Ibrahim granted a motion for substituted service, allowing the defense to paste court documents at the specified address. The judge also ordered that hearing notices be issued to Ukandu and the NJC, scheduling the next session for July 6.
The underlying dispute involves an ongoing internal struggle within the ADC. Ukandu claims the reassignment of a case concerning party leadership from Justice Emeka Nwite to Justice Lifu was improper and contradicted existing court directives.
