Three prominent chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have intensified a major legal confrontation by formally petitioning the National Judicial Council (NJC). Their petition seeks sanctions against Justice A.L. Akintola of the Oyo State High Court, alleging judicial indiscretion and abuse of office over the issuance of conflicting court orders concerning the party’s upcoming national convention.

The petitioners, Austin Nwachukwu, Amah Nnanna, and Turnah George, are also plaintiffs in a related case before the Federal High Court in Abuja (Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025). That court had earlier issued a restraining order barring the PDP from holding its planned national elective convention, originally slated for November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

However, the core of their grievance against Justice Akintola arises from an ex parte order he issued on November 4, which directed the PDP and its National Chairman, Umar Damagum, to proceed with the convention, a move that directly contradicted the subsisting order of the Federal High Court. The petitioners, who are reportedly associates of Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and a staunch opponent of the convention, argue that Akintola’s ruling represents a “blatant act of judicial indiscretion and abuse of office.”

In their petition to the NJC, Nwachukwu, Nnanna, and George maintained that “even a non-lawyer knows that a State High Court lacks the authority to function as an appellate court over a decision of the Federal High Court.” They further contended that Justice Akintola’s ex parte order, issued despite the Federal High Court’s conclusive determination of a similar case, undermines the ongoing Judicial Reforms championed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN).

The petitioners asserted that by issuing such an order, Justice Akintola effectively assumed the role of an appellate court, sitting on appeal over and varying a Federal High Court judgment through an ex parte proceeding. They also pointed out that the Federal High Court judgment, delivered by Justice Omotosho, had been widely reported in national media, implying that Justice Akintola could not have been unaware of its existence before issuing his own order.

Meanwhile, new details have emerged from the Oyo State High Court in Ibadan concerning the controversial ex parte application. According to court records, Justice Akintola issued the disputed order following an application filed by Folahan Malomo Adelabi. The suit named the PDP, Umar Damagum, Governor Umar Fintiri of Adamawa State, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as defendants.

Adelabi’s application sought an interim injunction to restrain the defendants from suspending or preventing him and other delegates from participating in the national convention, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

The Oyo High Court’s ruling, now under scrutiny, has further deepened the ongoing internal crisis within the PDP, while simultaneously raising fresh questions about judicial consistency and inter-court authority. The NJC’s eventual response to the petition is expected to set a critical precedent for judicial accountability and inter-court respect within Nigeria’s legal system.