PDP Shake-Up: Supreme Court Nullifies Ibadan Convention, Wike-backed Faction Takes Reins

Published 22 hours ago3 minute read
Pelumi Ilesanmi
Pelumi Ilesanmi
PDP Shake-Up: Supreme Court Nullifies Ibadan Convention, Wike-backed Faction Takes Reins

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is currently grappling with a severe leadership impasse, prompting an emergency meeting of key stakeholders in Asokoro, Abuja. This high-level session, convened to safeguard the institutional integrity of the party, brought together influential organs including the Board of Trustees (BoT), the PDP Governors’ Forum, members of the National Assembly Caucus, the National Executive Committee (NEC), the National Caucus, state chairmen, and ex officio members. The urgency of this gathering stems from a recent Supreme Court judgment that profoundly impacted the party's leadership structure, leading the BoT to formally assume leadership of the party.

The Supreme Court, in a landmark decision on a Thursday (implicitly around April 2026), definitively resolved the protracted leadership crisis within the PDP. The court nullified the party’s National Convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State, in November 2025, which had produced the Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee (NWC). This ruling was delivered in separate judgments on two related appeals concerning the party's internal affairs. The first appeal was filed by former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido, challenging the party's refusal to issue him a nomination form. The second sought judicial recognition of the outcomes of the 2025 Ibadan convention. A five-member panel of the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeal’s decision with a 3-2 split judgment in both appeals, declaring the convention invalid for violating subsisting court orders.

The implications of the Supreme Court's judgment were far-reaching. The court, in its unanimous decision, not only invalidated the Ibadan Convention but also upheld the suspension of Senator Samuel Anyanwu, Hon. Umar Bature, and Kamaldeen Ajibade as National Secretary, National Organising Secretary, and National Legal Adviser, respectively, from the party. Consequently, all actions taken by these individuals, including the appointment of Abdulrahman Mohammed as acting national chairman, the composition of the national caretaker working committee, and the conduct and outcome of the March 29, 2026 convention in Abuja, were declared illegal, null, and ab initio void. This ruling effectively collapsed both the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led and the Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led competing leadership structures within the party.

Justice Chioma Nwosu-Iheme, delivering the lead majority judgment, sternly emphasized the paramount importance of obeying court orders, regardless of whether they favor the parties involved. She condemned instances of judges using their courts for mischief and lawyers failing in their responsibilities, warning of potential societal doomsday if such practices continued. The court found that the Ibadan convention flagrantly disobeyed an initial restraining order issued by Judge James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja, with parties resorting to

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