Nigeria, April 2 -- The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suspended recognition of all leadership factions of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) following a ruling by the Court of Appeal and ongoing litigation over the party's leadership.

In a statement by its spokesperson, Mohammed Haruna, INEC said its decision followed the directive by the Court of Appeal, directing that the two warring factions of the party maintain the status quo pending the determination of a substantive suit currently before the Federal High Court in Abuja.

INEC said it also decided to stop engaging with any of the two warring factions until there's a substantive court judgement, after it received conflicting letters from both sides, each as...