PDP Faction Drags INEC To Court, Seeks Nullification Of Ibadan Convention

A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising the party’s national convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State, on November 15 and 16.

In the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2501/2025, the party—alongside Mohammed Abdulrahman, acting national chairman, and Samuel Anyanwu, national secretary, is asking the court to declare the convention and all decisions taken there as “null, void and of no effect.”

The plaintiffs are members of the faction loyal to Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

They are also seeking an order restraining INEC and security agencies from recognising the 6th to 25th defendants — including Umar Damagum, Kabiru Turaki, the newly announced national chairman, and other key figures — as officials of the PDP.

In their originating summons, the plaintiffs argue that the Ibadan convention was conducted in defiance of three subsisting judgments of the Federal High Court.

They referred to the judgement delivered on October 31 in FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025: between Austine Nwachukwu v INEC & Ors; as well as the interim order of November 11 and judgement of November 14 in FHC/ABJ/CS/2299/2025 between Alhaji Sule Lamido v PDP & Ors.

They also cited on the judgement delivered on May 31, 2023, in FHC/ABJ/CS/139/2023: Nyesom Wike v PDP & Ors.

The plaintiffs submitted that the various decisions had nullified the 21-day notice issued for the national convention and had expressly restrained the party from conducting the exercise.

They alleged that despite the court rulings, the fifth to 25th defendants “organised themselves and their cohorts” and convened a gathering in Ibadan where they purportedly elected national officers and announced the suspension or expulsion of some prominent party members.