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By Lizzy Chirkpi
A Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State, has nullified the National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held in the state capital on November 15, 2025.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, the court barred members of the National Working Committee (NWC) led by former Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Tanimu Turaki, from parading themselves as national officers of the PDP.
The court held that the Ibadan convention, from which the Turaki-led NWC emerged, was conducted in clear violation of the PDP Constitution as well as subsisting court orders, rendering the entire process and its outcomes null and void.
Consequently, the court affirmed the Caretaker Committee chaired by Mohammed Abdulrahman, with Senator Samuel Anyanwu serving as secretary, as the only recognised national leadership of the party, pending the conduct of a fresh and valid National Convention.
In its ruling, the court declared: “The purported National Convention held on November 15, 2025, in Ibadan is hereby set aside for non-compliance with the constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party.” It further restrained “the defendants, including members of the Tanimu Turaki-led committee, from further acting or presenting themselves as national officers of the party.”
The ruling is the latest twist in the prolonged leadership crisis that has plagued the PDP since its disappointing performance in the 2023 general elections. The party has remained sharply divided, with rival factions laying claim to the national secretariat, holding parallel meetings, issuing suspensions, and engaging in multiple court battles that have weakened its internal cohesion ahead of future electoral contests.