The leadership crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) took a fresh turn on Wednesday as the Supreme Court of Nigeria reserved judgment in the appeal challenging the validity of the party’s national convention held in Ibadan.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Garba Mohammed, said a date for judgment would be communicated to parties after lawyers adopted their final written arguments.
The case centres on a bitter internal power struggle between a faction led by Taminu Turaki and another group aligned with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, both laying claim to the legitimacy of the party’s leadership structure that emerged from the disputed convention.
The Turaki-led executives, who emerged from the controversial exercise, are asking the Supreme Court to overturn the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria, which nullified the convention on the grounds that it was conducted in violation of a valid court order. Their counsel, Paul Erokoro, urged the court to allow the appeal and dismiss a cross-appeal filed by rival factions, insisting the matter falls strictly within the internal affairs of the party.
However, opposing counsel, including Joseph Daudu and J. C. Njikonye, representing Sule Lamido and the Wike-aligned group, argued that the case goes beyond internal party disputes. They maintained that the courts had jurisdiction since the party allegedly disobeyed a subsisting court order.
The dispute traces back to an earlier ruling of the Federal High Court of Nigeria in Abuja, where Justice Peter Lifu restrained the PDP from proceeding with its convention until Lamido was allowed to participate in the chairmanship contest. Despite the order, the party went ahead with the convention, insisting the court lacked jurisdiction over its internal processes.
The Court of Appeal later set aside the convention, holding that it was conducted in defiance of a valid court order, a decision that triggered the current appeal before the Supreme Court.
The apex court’s eventual ruling is expected to determine not only the legality of the Ibadan convention but also the direction of the PDP’s leadership structure as political realignments intensify ahead of the 2027 general elections.
