The Peoples Democratic Party’s plans for the 2027 elections have hit another obstacle, as the Federal High Court in Abuja barred INEC from recognising or attending its proposed national convention. The convention was to elect new national officers who would organise the processes leading to the primaries to elect their candidates for the election.

Judge James Omotosho delivered his ruling on Friday in the case numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/2025. He ruled that, while the party had not organised the convention in accordance with legal requirements, the political segment acted in compliance with the party’s constitution, the Nigerian Constitution, and the Electoral Act.

The case was initiated by three aggrieved members of the party, namely Austin Nwachukwu (Imo PDP chairman), Amah Abraham Nnanna (Abia PDP chairman), and Turnah Alabh George (PDP Secretary, South-South), who are contesting the legality of the convention the party is planning to hold in Ibadan, on November 15 and 16.

The plaintiffs named the Independent National Electoral Commission, the PDP, Samuel Anyanwu (National Secretary of the PDP), Umar Bature (National Organising Secretary), the National Working Committee, the National Executive Committee, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum, Ali Odefa, and Emmanuel Ogidi as the defendants in the matter.

Delivering the judgement, the Judge agreed with the plaintiff, stating that the evidence presented to the court established that the party did not hold congresses in the state of the federal before announcing the holding of the convention, and that the signing of notices and correspondence of the PDP by its acting national chairman without the national secretary violated the law, rendering such notices and correspondences null and void.

Justice Omotosho maintained that the party also failed to give the electoral commission the required 21-day notice before holding a meeting or congress, but the party failed to do so. He stated that because of that, the electoral commission was not allowed to monitor their congresses if they had one, stating that it was a violation of the law.

The Judge also disagreed with the preliminary objection of the defendants, which argued that the court should ignore the plaintiff because it was an internal matter that would be addressed internally. Instead, Justice Omotosho asked the PDP “to go back and put its house in order, and to give the statutory 21-day notice to INEC before it can proceed with the proposed convention.”

Moreover, the judge ruled that the electoral commission must not accept the outcome of any PDP national convention that is not conducted in accordance with due process, the law, and INEC’s own regulations, stating it would be a disregard for the constitution and the electoral law.

The progress of the PDP has been in a state of uncertainty after the 2023 general elections due to internal conflicts and different legal battles, which have impeded the party from having concrete leadership at the national level. These crises have also caused many state governors and other former stakeholders to defect to the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, and the new coalition, the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

But the party demonstrated the possibility of resolving its internal issues when its National Executive Committee (NEC) elected Umar Damagum as the party’s substantive national chairperson until the national convention, which will be held in Ibadan from November 15th to 16th, 2025.

The party has also promised that the national convention will be a vibrant and culturally rich celebration aimed at promoting its values, attracting new members, particularly young people, and reinforcing its image as a national and people-oriented organisation.

While the ongoing preparation for the convention has been met with contentions from the intending members of the party who want to occupy some leadership position, the latest judgement of the court has created another uncertainty about the future of the party as one of the major oppositions in the country.

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