The Supreme Court of Nigeria on Thursday dealt a definitive blow to the leadership hierarchy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), affirming the nullification of the party’s national convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State, on 15 and 16 November 2025.
In a split decision, three out of five justices of the apex court dismissed the appeal filed by the Tanimu Turaki-led faction, ruling that the petition lacked merit. Delivering the lead judgement, Justice Stephen Adah held that the appellants acted in flagrant violation of a subsisting Federal High Court order, which had specifically restrained the party from proceeding with the exercise.
The ruling effectively dissolves the national executive committee produced during the Ibadan convention and upholds the findings of the lower courts.
The legal imbroglio is the latest chapter in a protracted power struggle within Nigeria’s main opposition party. The conflict has seen the PDP fractured into two primary camps: one aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and another loyal to the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde.
The controversy was ignited following the Ibadan convention, which was challenged by party chieftains including Austin Nwachukwu. They contested the legality of the proceedings conducted under the then Ambassador Iliya Damagum-led National Executive Committee.
Concurrently, the former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, instituted a suit before the Federal High Court challenging his exclusion from the convention. Mr Lamido argued that he was systematically denied the opportunity to purchase nomination forms to contest for the office of National Chairman.
Prior to the convention, Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court had issued a restraining order, halting the exercise until Mr Lamido was permitted to participate. However, the PDP leadership proceeded with the convention in defiance of the court, maintaining that the selection of officers was an “internal affair” beyond the jurisdiction of the judiciary.
The Court of Appeal subsequently nullified the convention’s outcome, rejecting the party’s argument. The appellate court ruled that the deliberate disobedience of a valid court order overrode the principle of non-interference in internal party matters.
Seeking to overturn this, the Turaki-led faction approached the Supreme Court, with their counsel, Paul Erokoro, SAN, urging the justices to declare that the lower courts lacked jurisdiction.
During the hearing, counsel to Sule Lamido, Ewere Aliemeke, alongside representatives for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), urged the court to dismiss the appeal.
Chief Joseph Daudu, SAN, representing several respondents, argued forcefully that the breach of a subsisting court order removed the matter from the realm of “internal affairs.” This view was ultimately echoed in the apex court’s decision.
“The appellants acted in violation of a subsisting order,” Justice Adah noted, reinforcing the principle that political parties are not above the law or the directives of the bench.
The judgement leaves the PDP in a state of administrative uncertainty, as the party must now navigate the legal and political wreckage of a voided leadership structure while attempting to reconcile its warring factions ahead of future electoral cycles.
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