By Divine Sam
The Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that a purported resignation letter allegedly written by former African Democratic Congress (ADC) Deputy National Chairman, Nafiu Bala Gombe, was not authentic and could not be accepted as proof that he voluntarily left his position.
Justice Peter Lifu gave the ruling in his judgment delivered on November 5, rejecting a document which the faction of the party led by former Senate President, David Mark, had relied on to establish that Bala resigned before the party’s leadership transition.
A Certified True Copy of the judgment obtained on Wednesday showed that the judge reached his conclusion after comparing the signature on the disputed resignation letter with those on Bala’s witness statements on oath.
According to the judge, the signatures showed material differences, raising doubts about the authenticity of the document.
Justice Lifu explained that the certification of a document does not automatically establish that the signature on it is genuine, particularly where its authenticity has been challenged.
“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,” he held.
The judge further noted that courts could compare disputed signatures with other established specimens without necessarily requiring expert testimony in every case.
He said his examination of the signature on Exhibit ADC-1 alongside those on Bala’s sworn statements showed significant differences.
“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),” the judge ruled.
The disputed document has been a major issue in the leadership crisis rocking the ADC, which culminated in the court nullifying the emergence of the David Mark-led leadership and the party’s nomination of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
Bala had approached the court in September 2025, challenging the legitimacy 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 from his position on May 17, 2025, with the resignation subsequently communicated to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Bala, however, consistently denied authoring the letter, insisting that the document and the signature attributed to him were forged.
In April 2026, he publicly disowned the letter, saying: “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 undermines a key piece of evidence relied upon by the Mark-led faction to establish that Bala had relinquished his position before the party’s leadership change.
In another aspect of the 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 meet the mandatory requirement of democratic election under Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act 2022.
The judge maintained that the powers of the party’s National Executive Committee and INEC’s subsequent recognition of the leadership arrangement could not replace compliance with the statutory provisions.
The ruling has added another dimension to the ADC leadership dispute, with the Mark-led faction rejecting the decision and indicating plans to challenge it at the Court of Appeal.
It has also heightened uncertainty surrounding the party’s preparations for the 2027 general elections, particularly following the nullification of Atiku’s presidential nomination.
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