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By Myke Agunwa
The Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan has cleared the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to go ahead with its elective National Convention slated for November 15 and 16, 2025.
The Oyo High Court’s decision contrasts sharply with an earlier interim order issued by Justice Inyang Ekwo Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which temporarily restrained the PDP from conducting its national convention pending the determination of a suit challenging the legitimacy of the current NWC.
Justice Omotosho’s order, obtained by some members loyal to the suspended National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, and National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade, had directed parties to maintain the status quo. The move threw the party into confusion, with opposing factions announcing conflicting suspensions and meetings in Abuja.
But in a ruling delivered on Monday, November 3, 2025, Justice A. L. Akintola, in Suit No. I/1336/2025, filed by Folahan Malamo Adelabi, an aspirant for the position of Deputy National Organizing Secretary, directed the party’s officers, agents, and servants not to truncate, frustrate, or disrupt the scheduled convention.
The judge further ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to deploy monitors and observers to the convention and mandated Hon. Umaru Ahmadu Fintiri, Chairman of the PDP National Convention Organizing Committee (NCOC), to proceed with all necessary arrangements for the event.
The ruling comes amid deepening divisions within the PDP over its national leadership and the legality of recent decisions by rival factions of the National Working Committee (NWC).
Monday’s ruling by Justice Akintola effectively provides a fresh legal backing for the Fintiri-led Convention Committee to proceed with the exercise in Ibadan, provided it adheres to the approved guidelines and timetable.
The crisis within the PDP intensified in October when two rival factions of the NWC announced separate suspensions of key national officers, including Anyanwu, Ajibade, and Deputy National Legal Adviser. The opposing group later countered with the suspension of the acting National Chairman, Amb. Umar Damagum, and other officials, further deepening the party’s leadership rift.
Party insiders say the upcoming convention is expected to either resolve the lingering leadership dispute or further polarize the main opposition ahead of the 2027 general elections.