Court fixes October 31 for Judgment on PDP convention suit

The Federal High Court in Abuja has slated October 31, 2025, for judgment in a suit seeking to stop the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) forthcoming national convention over alleged violations of the party’s rules.

9news Nigeria reports that Justice James Omotosho fixed the date on Tuesday after hearing arguments from both sides in the case filed by three aggrieved members of the party: Austin Nwachukwu (Imo PDP chairman), Amah Abraham Nnanna (Abia PDP chairman) and Turnah Alabh George (South-South PDP Secretary).

The trio are asking the court to halt the convention scheduled for November 15–16, 2025, in Ibadan, Oyo State, where new national officers are expected to be elected, citing breaches of the PDP Constitution.

The nine defendants include the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), PDP, National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu, National Organising Secretary Umar Baturrle, the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) and National Executive Committee (NEC), Acting National Chairman Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum, Ali Odefa and Emmanuel Ogidi.

At Tuesday’s sitting, Justice Omotosho reiterated his earlier order that all parties must maintain the status quo, warning that any attempt to flout the directive would render subsequent steps taken during the case null and void.

Counsel for the plaintiffs, Joseph Daudu (SAN), urged the court not to dismiss the case as an internal party affair but as an issue of compliance with the 1999 Constitution, Electoral Act 2022, and the PDP’s Constitution.

Daudu argued that INEC is constitutionally mandated to monitor political party congresses for them to be valid. He maintained that no valid congresses were conducted in 14 states before the PDP leadership issued notice for the convention.

However, Acting PDP Chairman, Ambassador Umar Damagum, represented by Paul Erokoro (SAN), asked the court to decline jurisdiction, insisting that conventions and congresses fall strictly within a party’s internal affairs.

This position was supported by Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), representing the NWC and NEC, who told the court that “courts cannot inquire into the internal affairs of the party.”