Court stopping our convention assault on democracy – PDP

ABUJA—Shocked by yesterday’s court ruling stopping the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, from going ahead with its national convention scheduled to hold in Ibadan, Oyo state on November 15 and 16,
The party described the court decision as an assault on Nigeria’s democratic process and vowed to appeal the decision.

The party, in a statement issued last night by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, charged its members to go ahead with the preparations towards holding the convention.

We’re appalled by the court order —PDP

The statement, titled ,”PDP Planned National Convention Not Vitiated by Court”, read:
“The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is appalled by the judgement of the Federal High Court Abuja, presided over by Honorable Justice Kolawole Omotosho today, (yesterday) describing it as an assault on Nigeria’s democratic process.

However, the PDP states that the judgment of the court does not vitiate its ability to proceed with the processes and activities towards the National Convention to elect new National Officers to pilot the affairs of the Party for the next four years.

“Our Party notes the recent judgement of the Supreme Court which affirms the supremacy of a political party in the management of its internal affairs. The PDP therefore charges its members, Chapter and Organs to remain steadfast and focused on preparations towards the holding of the National Convention of our Party. Nevertheless, the PDP as the leading opposition Party in Nigeria committed to the Rule of Law has accordingly directed its lawyers to take immediate action to appeal this judgment in our unwavering determination to uphold, defend and promote multi-party democracy in our country”.

It’s handiwork of saboteurs —Damagum

National Chairman of the party, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum, while reacting to the court decision in an interview on national television, said it was the handiwork of saboteurs.

In a similar reaction, former Deputy National Chairman of the party, Chief Olabode George, described Friday’s judgement of Justice James Omotosho of a Federal High Court, Abuja, as “the joke of the century, open recipe for anarchy and a display of judicial brigandage”.

Why PDP can’t hold its convention —— Court

The Federal High Court, in the judgement held that the party failed to fulfil the statutory condition precedents that would enable it to organize the convention.According to the court, evidence before it established that the party failed to comply with relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, guidelines of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as well as its own regulations.

While upholding the case that was brought before it by three aggrieved members of the party, Justice Omotosho, in his verdict that lasted over four hours, faulted the PDP for its failure to conduct valid state congresses before it slated dates to hold a convention to elect its national officers.

The plaintiffs- Hon. Austin Nwachukwu (Imo PDP Chairman), Hon. Amah Abraham Nnanna (Abia PDP Chairman) and Turnah Alabh George (PDP Secretary, South-South, had in the suit marked:

FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025, alleged that valid congresses were not conducted in 14 states of the federation before the convention was fixed.

Cited as defendants in the matter were; INEC; PDP; its National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum; the National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu; the National Organizing Secretary, Umar Bature; two national officers of the party, Ali Odefa and Emmanuel Ogidi, as well as the NWC and NEC of the party.

The court held that it was impossible for the convention to hold when congresses to produce delegates that would vote for the national officers, had not been held in the various states. Besides, it noted that notices for the national convention were signed by only the National Chairman of the party, excluding the National Secretary.

Justice Omotosho held that such notices and correspondences amounted to a nullity in the eyes of the law, adding that failure of the PDP to comply with the laid down procedures, placed the scheduled convention in jeopardy. Consequently, he directed the party to go back and put its house in order, and to equally send the statutory 21-day notice of meetings and congresses to INEC to enable it to monitor the procceses.

The plaintiffs had contended that the 1999 Constitution, as amended, made it mandatory for INEC to monitor congress of every political party before it could be deemed to have been validly conducted.

They told the court that no valid notice was served on INEC for the purpose of the planned convention.

The court, while agreeing with them, dismissed preliminary objections the defendants filed to challenge its jurisdiction to meddle in what they insisted was an internal affair of a political party. The court proceeded to restrain INEC from receiving, publishing or recognizing the outcome of the convention slated for Ibadan, pending when the relevant laws and regulations were complied with by the PDP.

It held that the electoral body was not obligated to give effect to the outcome of the convention a political party conducted without strict adherence to the 1999 Constitution, as amended, the Electoral Act 2022, and its own guidelines.

The court stressed that the party was not entitled to hold a national convention until it provided a proper framework for the election of delegates that would participate in the exercise.

Meanwhile, in a related development, the court, in a separate ruling that was delivered on Friday by Justice Peter Lifu, rejected an ex-parte application a former governor of Jigawa state, Sule Lamido, filed for an interim injunction to restrain the PDP from going ahead with the national convention.

Lamido prayed the court to issue the interim order pending the hearing and determination of a suit he lodged before it.

The erstwhile governor approached the court after he was denied a nomination form to contest for the position of National Chairman of the party. In the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/2299/2025, he prayed the court to halt the convention and prevent INEC from supervising it. He cited the PDP and INEC as 1st and 2nd defendants, respectively.

In his ruling, Justice Lifu, who declined to grant the interim relief, ordered the former governor to put the defendants on notice to enable them to appear before the court to show cause why his prayers should not be granted. He subsequently adjourned the matter to November 6 for hearing.

It’s display of judicial brigandage — Bode George

By Dapo Akinrefon

Meanwhile, former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has described Friday’s judgement of Justice James Omotosho of a Federal High Court, Abuja, stopping the party’s National Convention as “the joke of the century, open recipe for anarchy and a display of judicial brigandage”.

George, in his reaction to the verdict, said: “This judgement will consume this country. It is high time the judge put down his wig and gown to join politics. What is going on? I call on the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the National Judicial Council to call this judge to order. Any judgement capable of leading to a breakdown of law and order should be avoided. What power does he have to order the PDP not to have its National Convention? Has the judiciary gone to the dogs? During all our congresses leading to this convention, INEC officials were present.

“The electoral body witnessed the procedure. They took notes. INEC is not complaining. The judge did not even call INEC officials to crosscheck facts, and tell him what they witnessed during our congresses. So, why is the judge complaining? Does he have a political interest?

“What type of judgement is this? Are we still in a democracy? We have to be careful in this country. The CJN and NJC should monitor some of these judges before they set our democracy on fire.

“PDP is the oldest and most experienced party in the country today. Since 1998 when we formed this party, we have always followed the law during our congresses and conventions. So, nobody should teach us what we already know.”

He lamented that the judiciary is being used to truncate democracy in the largest black-populated country in the world. The PDP leader dismissed all the grounds adduced for the judgement, stating that it wasn’t the prerogative of the court to dabble into the internal affairs of a political party in managing its affairs as entrenched in its internal dynamics and Constitution.

Delay is not denial: PDP leaders see hope in court’s decision

By Luminous Jannamike, Abuja

A sudden court order stopping the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from holding its long-awaited national convention has shaken Nigeria’s main opposition.

Yet, rather than despair, party leaders are describing the development as a rare opportunity, a forced pause to heal old wounds and rebuild unity before the 2027 elections.

The ruling by the Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday halted the PDP’s planned convention scheduled for November 15–16, exposing once again the deep-seated mistrust, power tussles, and procedural lapses that have long plagued the party’s internal workings.

Justice James Omotosho, who delivered the ruling, cited violations of the PDP constitution and electoral guidelines, effectively directing the party to “go back and put its house in order.”

For a movement still struggling to rediscover its footing nearly a decade after losing power, the judgment landed like a thunderclap, painful but also revealing. It served as both a setback and a sobering reminder that many of the PDP’s problems are of its own making.

From the grassroots to the national hierarchy, unresolved grievances have festered for years, resurfacing with each election cycle. The aborted convention, which was to produce new national officers and reposition the PDP for 2027, has now become another casualty in the party’s long battle with itself.

Within hours of the ruling, the mood inside Wadata Plaza shifted from outrage to introspection. While some members decried what they called judicial overreach, others saw providence at work, a divine pause that could save the PDP from imploding. Their reactions suggested that many within the fold now view the court’s intervention not as an obstacle, but as a moment of reckoning.

The judgment comes amid growing unrest across several state chapters. Weeks of bitter disputes over congresses in the South East and South South, particularly in Anambra, Ebonyi, and parts of Rivers, had already cast a dark cloud over preparations for the convention. Allegations of exclusion, manipulated delegate lists, and breaches of the party’s zoning formula only deepened existing cracks.

Tensions boiled over when former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, clashed with party officials at the PDP headquarters over the sale of the chairmanship nomination form. The incident, dramatic as it was, now appears to have been just one flashpoint in a much deeper crisis, one the court’s decision has now exposed in full.
Party elders and stakeholders say the episode once again underscores how the PDP’s recurring internal contradictions have eroded its image as Nigeria’s leading opposition.

Insiders admit the situation is nothing new, a familiar pattern in which old wounds reopen every election season, fueled by disputes the PDP has never fully resolved.

By Friday evening, the atmosphere within the party was a mix of anxiety, relief, and cautious hope. Some national officers privately lamented that the court order had stalled the PDP’s momentum. Others, however, called it a ‘necessary correction’, a chance to restore order, rebuild trust, and prevent history from repeating itself.

Perhaps most striking was the restrained reaction from the grassroots. From Imo to Kano and down to Abuja, members spoke less of anger and more of renewal. Across interviews and statements, a common refrain emerged: the PDP must stop running from its own shadow and confront its internal contradictions if it truly hopes to return to power.

REACTIONS

‘Delay is not denial’ — Timothy Osadolor, PDP Deputy National Youth Leader

“Well, for me, as much as it’s quite unfortunate and disheartening for millions of Nigerians, including party members and party admirers and followers, over this development, I also want the leadership of the party to look inwards and use this delay to do significant internal healing and reconciliations.

“Too many issues have been left unresolved. So, I believe that delay is not denial. Even though I know we are going to appeal this particular judgment, I do not want the attention of the leadership to be on the appeal.

“Their attention should be too prone to what are the concerns of our brothers who are insisting that certain criteria have to be met. All they’re asking for is that an entire zone, the South East, needs their congresses to be concluded, at the zonal level, at the Anambra and the Ebonyi level too.

“So, these are the main reasons for the convention to take a pause and address. Recall that even the nationala secretary, ab initio, was one of those who said that he is interested in the convention holding, but that the South East zonal congresses must be concluded so that there will be delegates from the South East.