The Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal filed by a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by former Minister of Special Duties Kabiru Turaki, SAN, challenging the Federal High Court’s jurisdiction to hear a suit over the party’s planned convention in Ibadan on November 15 and 16, 2026.
A three-man panel of the Appeal Court is ruling on nine harmonized appeals filed by the Turaki-led section of the PDP, including one contesting a court order prohibiting the party from conducting its scheduled national convention on November 14 and 15, 2025.
In a majority vote, the appellate court upheld the lower court’s ruling that banned the Independent National Electoral Commission from certifying the proposed convention.
The court ruled that the Federal High Court was competent to hear the case, dismissing the Turaki-led faction’s claim that the conflict was entirely internal to the party.
The panel ruled that the appellants could not “repackage a clear violation of the party constitution and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as an internal party affair.”
The court then dismissed the appeal and ordered the appellants to pay N2 million in costs.
The appellate court stressed that compliance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act 2022, and the party’s constitution and guidelines is fundamental to democratic governance.
“Non-compliance with the 1999 Constitution, Electoral Act 2022, and party Constitution and Guidelines are at the heart of democratic governance, and compliance must be strictly enforced in the interest of democracy,” the court held.
As a result, the appellate court dismissed the appeal and assessed the appellants with N2 million in costs.
In his October 31, 2025 order, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court stopped INEC from receiving, publishing, or recognizing the convention’s outcome unless the party complied with the relevant legal rules.
The trial judge ruled that the evidence presented in court demonstrated that congresses were not held in some states of the federation and that the PDP failed to provide the statutory 21-day notice required for INEC to supervise its meetings and congresses.
Justice Omotosho further decided that notices and communications sent by the party’s National Chairman without the National Secretary’s approval were illegal.
The complaint, FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025, was filed by three dissatisfied PDP members: Austin Nwachukwu, Imo State PDP Chairman; Amah Abraham Nnanna, Abia State PDP Chairman; and Turnah Alabh George, PDP Secretary for the South South.
The plaintiffs, through their counsel, Joseph Daudu, SAN, had urged the court to halt the planned convention at which new national officers of the party were expected to be chosen.
