The Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that a resignation letter purportedly written by former Deputy National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nafiu Bala, was not authentic.
Justice Peter Lifu, in his judgment delivered on November 5, held that the document, which the faction led by former Senate President David Mark relied upon to establish Bala’s resignation from the party leadership, could not be accepted as genuine evidence.
A Certified True Copy of the judgment, obtained by our correspondent on Wednesday, showed that the judge reached the conclusion after comparing the signature on the disputed resignation letter with those on Bala’s sworn statements.
The judge identified material differences between the signatures and consequently rejected the document as proof that Bala voluntarily relinquished his position in the party.
Justice Lifu explained that although certification establishes that a document is a true copy of the record held by an authorised institution, it does not automatically authenticate a disputed signature.
He said, “The fact that a document is certified, however, does not, by that fact alone, settle a genuine dispute as to whether the person named in it, actually signed it.
“Certification may establish the status of the copy as a true copy of the document in the custody of the certifying authority; it does not necessarily establish the authenticity of the disputed signature.
“The court must therefore consider the document alongside the other relevant evidence.”
The judge further noted that courts could independently compare disputed signatures with admitted specimens without necessarily requiring expert testimony in every instance.
Applying the principle, he said he carefully examined the signature on Exhibit ADC-1, the disputed resignation letter, alongside those on Bala’s sworn statements and found significant inconsistencies.
“I am not satisfied that Exhibit ADC-1 represents the genuine act of the plaintiff.
“I therefore reject it as reliable proof that the plaintiff voluntarily resigned from his position as Deputy National Chairman of the 1st defendant (ADC),” he ruled.
The finding is significant to the protracted leadership crisis in the ADC, which has resulted in the nullification of the David Mark-led National Working Committee and the party’s nomination of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar for the 2027 presidential election.
Bala had instituted the suit in September 2025, challenging the legality of the leadership arrangement that produced Mark as national chairman and Rauf Aregbesola as national secretary.
The Mark-led faction had argued that Bala resigned on May 17, 2025, with the purported resignation subsequently communicated to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Bala, however, consistently denied resigning, insisting that the letter and the signature attributed to him were forged.
In April 2026, he publicly disowned the document, declaring that he neither authored nor signed it.
“I wish to state that this paper did not come from me, and that is not my signature on it. The signature you see there was forged,” he said.
The court's rejection of the document has dealt a major blow to the Mark-led faction's argument that Bala had voluntarily vacated his position ahead of the party's leadership transition.
In the same judgment, Justice Lifu held that the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola at the ADC's 99th National Executive Committee meeting on July 27, 2025, had not been demonstrated to comply with the statutory requirement for democratic election under Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act 2022.
He maintained that neither the powers of the party's National Executive Committee nor INEC's subsequent recognition of the leadership arrangement could override the legal requirement.
The judgment has deepened the uncertainty surrounding the party's leadership and its preparations for the 2027 general election.
The Mark-led faction has rejected the ruling and indicated its intention to appeal, setting the stage for another round of legal battles over control of the opposition party.
With the court also nullifying the leadership arrangement under which Atiku Abubakar emerged as the party's presidential candidate, the ADC faces fresh questions over its leadership structure, internal stability and readiness for the forthcoming elections.
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