Supreme Court reserves judgment in PDP convention appeal over legality of the Ibadan national convention and prior court rulings
The Supreme Court has reserved judgment in the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, seeking to overturn decisions of the Court of Appeal which nullified the party’s national convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State.
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The ruling was reserved on Wednesday after a five-member panel of justices, led by Justice Lawal Garba, heard final arguments from all parties and adopted their written submissions.
Justice Garba announced that the court would deliver its judgment on a date to be communicated to the parties, bringing a key phase of the legal battle to a temporary pause.
The PDP convention appeal ruling centres on the legitimacy of the November 15 to 16, 2025 convention held at the Lekan Salami Stadium, which has been the subject of multiple conflicting court decisions.
The Tanimu Turaki-led faction of the PDP is asking the apex court to set aside earlier rulings that invalidated the convention and restricted recognition of its outcomes by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The faction argued that the matter concerns internal party affairs and should not be subjected to judicial intervention, insisting that due process was followed in organising the convention.
However, lower courts had ruled against the faction, nullifying the Ibadan convention and issuing orders that prevented INEC from recognising its decisions.
The legal dispute stems from earlier judgments delivered by the Federal High Court in Abuja, which found that the party failed to comply with constitutional provisions and electoral guidelines before holding the convention.
In one ruling, Justice James Omotosho restrained the party from proceeding with the convention, citing failure to conduct valid state congresses as required under the Electoral Act and party constitution.
Another ruling by Justice Peter Lifu halted the exercise following a suit by former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido, who alleged he was unfairly excluded from contesting the national chairmanship.
Lamido argued that he was denied access to nomination forms, a claim the court upheld in issuing orders stopping the convention.
The dispute also involves suits filed by aggrieved party members who challenged the legality of the convention process and internal party decisions.
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With the Supreme Court now reserving judgment, the political and legal future of the contested convention remains uncertain, pending the final ruling of the apex court.
