A Nigerian appeal court has upheld a ruling preventing the country’s electoral body from recognising the outcome of the 2025 national convention of the main opposition party, in a decision that could deepen an ongoing leadership crisis within the party.
A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja on Monday affirmed an earlier judgment that restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from validating the outcome of the national convention organised by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The convention was held between 15 and 16 November 2025 in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State, where new national officers were expected to be elected to lead the party ahead of future elections.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Uchechukwu Onyemenam ruled that the PDP failed to comply with constitutional and statutory requirements that must be fulfilled before a political party convention can be considered valid. The appellate court panel, led by Justice Mohammed Danjuma, unanimously dismissed an appeal filed by a faction of the party that challenged the jurisdiction of the lower court to intervene in the matter.
In its ruling, the court held that the PDP failed to properly notify INEC about the convention, a legal requirement under Nigeria’s electoral framework. Justice Onyemenam said the party did not issue a valid notice to the electoral commission as required by law. The court also found that the party failed to conduct valid congresses in more than 14 states before convening the national convention — another key requirement under electoral regulations.
According to the judgment, such failures constituted violations of the country’s electoral laws and undermined the legitimacy of the convention. The court stressed that compliance with constitutional provisions and electoral rules was fundamental to democratic governance.
“Non-compliance with the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act 2022 and party guidelines strikes at the heart of democratic governance and compliance must be strictly enforced in the interest of democracy,” the court held.
The panel therefore ruled that the trial court acted correctly in assuming jurisdiction and granting an order restraining INEC from recognising the convention’s outcome.
The decision affirms an earlier judgment delivered on 31 October 2025 by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja. In that ruling, the judge barred INEC from receiving, publishing or recognising the outcome of the PDP’s convention until the party complied with relevant legal provisions governing such gatherings.
Justice Omotosho found that evidence presented by INEC and other parties in the suit showed that the PDP failed to organise valid congresses in several states before planning the national convention.
The court also ruled that official notices and correspondence issued by the party’s national chairman without the co-signature of the national secretary violated both party rules and electoral law, rendering the documents invalid.
Another key issue identified by the court was the failure of the PDP to provide the mandatory 21-day notice to INEC before holding meetings and congresses. Such notice is required to enable the electoral commission to monitor political party activities as mandated by law. According to the court, the absence of the statutory notice prevented INEC from performing its oversight responsibilities.
The legal challenge was initiated by three members of the PDP: Austin Nwachukwu, the party’s chairman in Imo State; Amah Abraham Nnanna, the chairman in Abia State; and Turnah George, the party’s South-South zonal secretary.
The plaintiffs filed the suit through senior lawyer Joseph Daudu, arguing that the convention would violate provisions of the Nigerian constitution, the Electoral Act and the PDP’s internal rules. Their suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025, asked the court to stop the planned convention where new national leaders were expected to emerge.
The defendants in the case included INEC, the PDP, its national secretary Samuel Anyanwu, national organising secretary Umar Bature, the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), National Executive Committee (NEC), acting national chairman Umar Iliya Damagum, as well as party officials Ali Odefa and Emmanuel Ogidi.
The legal battle reflects deeper internal divisions within the PDP, Nigeria’s main opposition party. The November 2025 convention reportedly produced a factional leadership within the party, further intensifying internal tensions and competing claims to authority.
In separate litigation linked to the party’s internal crisis, the appellate court also affirmed the suspension of several senior PDP officials, including national secretary Samuel Anyanwu, national organising secretary Umar Bature and national legal adviser Kamaldeen Ajibade.
The court ruled that the party’s National Working Committee acted within its constitutional powers to discipline members for alleged anti-party activities and conduct considered inconsistent with the provisions of the party’s constitution.
Requests seeking to nullify the suspensions and reinstate the officials were dismissed for lacking merit, reinforcing the authority of the party’s internal disciplinary processes.
The ruling means that INEC cannot legally recognise the decisions or leadership produced at the Ibadan convention unless the PDP complies with the requirements set out in electoral law and its own constitution.
The PDP, which governed Nigeria for 16 years before losing power in 2015, remains the country’s largest opposition party. However, recurring legal battles and factional disputes have continued to challenge its efforts to rebuild and present a united political front.
With the appellate court’s decision reinforcing the earlier ruling of the Federal High Court, the party may need to organise fresh congresses and follow statutory procedures if it hopes to conduct a convention whose outcome will be recognised by Nigeria’s electoral authorities.
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