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By Lizzy Chirkpi
A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Supreme Court of Nigeria on Thursday nullified the party’s controversial national convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State, in November 2025.
The apex court, in a split 3–2 decision delivered by a five-member panel, dismissed an appeal filed by a faction of the party led by former Minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki (SAN), ruling that the exercise was conducted in clear violation of a subsisting court order.
Delivering the lead judgment in appeal number SC/CV/164/2026, Justice Stephen Adah held that the appellants acted in defiance of a valid order issued earlier by the Federal High Court, which had expressly restrained them from proceeding with the convention.
“The disobedience of a subsisting court order is not in dispute,” Justice Adah ruled, stressing that no political process can stand on the foundation of illegality.
The court unanimously agreed despite the split outcome on reasoning that the appeal lacked merit. It consequently upheld the concurrent decisions of both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal, which had earlier invalidated the convention and barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising its outcome.
The Ibadan convention, held on November 15 and 16, 2025, was organised amid a deepening leadership crisis within the PDP, with rival factions laying claim to the party’s national structure ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Turaki-led faction had gone ahead with the convention despite an existing restraining order from the Federal High Court. In a controversial move, the group reportedly secured a counter-order from a separate court of coordinate jurisdiction in Ibadan, which it relied on to justify proceeding with the event.
However, both the trial court and the appellate court found this move to be an abuse of court process a position the Supreme Court has now firmly endorsed.
Justice Adah noted that the lower courts were correct in their interpretation and application of Sections 221, 222, and 229 of the 1999 Constitution, which regulate the conduct and organisation of political parties in Nigeria.
“Political parties are bound to operate within the framework of the Constitution, electoral laws, and valid judicial pronouncements. Any deviation renders such actions null and void,” he said.
With this ruling, all decisions, elections, and resolutions emanating from the Ibadan convention have been effectively nullified. The judgment also reinforces the judiciary’s stance on strict compliance with court orders, particularly in politically sensitive matters.
The judgment is expected to intensify the already fragile unity within the opposition party, raising fresh questions about its preparedness for upcoming electoral contests.
Meanwhile members of the Turaki faction are yet of to officially react