Following a Federal High Court judgment, INEC has recognised Abdulrahman Mohammed’s Wike-backed PDP faction and Senator Esther Nenadi Usman’s Labour Party caretaker committee as their respective leaders. This development became public after the electoral body invited both Wike’s PDP faction and Senator Usman’s LP faction to its first 2026 consultative meeting with political parties in
Following a Federal High Court judgment, INEC has recognised Abdulrahman Mohammed’s Wike-backed PDP faction and Senator Esther Nenadi Usman’s Labour Party caretaker committee as their respective leaders.
This development became public after the electoral body invited both Wike’s PDP faction and Senator Usman’s LP faction to its first 2026 consultative meeting with political parties in Abuja on Thursday.
Besides Abduraham Mohammed, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, an ally of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, attended the meeting, despite the Tanimu Turaki-led PDP appealing the Federal High Court’s judgment.
The quarterly consultative meeting, designated for the national chairmen and secretaries of all registered parties recognised by the commission, included the attendance of Professor Yilwatda Nentawe, the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), along with representatives from the David Mark-led African Democratic Congress (ADC) and other parties.
The Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State, had nullified the PDP National Convention that was held between 15 and 16, 2025, dismissing the election that brought in Kabiru Turaki as the chairman of the party.
The court, in its ruling on Friday, January 30th, 2025 held that the Caretaker Committee led by Mohammed Abdulrahman and Senator Samuel Anyanwu, which is the faction loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, remained the only recognised National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP, pending the conduct of a valid national convention.
This is against the background of the legal battle and internal crisis in the party which led to the Kabiru Turaki faction of the PDP initiating a lawsuit with Suit Number FHC/IB/CS/121/2025 seeking recognition of the convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State, on November 15, 2025, and validation of the election of the members of the National Working Committee which took place during the convention.
Giving his ruling on the matter, Justice Uche Agomoh of the Federal High Court barred Turaki and other officials elected at the convention from parading themselves as national officers of the party forthwith, stating that the convention was not conducted legally.
Justice Agomoh maintained that the organisation and the conduct of the said convention were in flagrant disobedience to two subsisting judgements of the same court, adding that returning to seek judicial approval for actions taken in defiance of court orders was an exercise in futility.
Although the Turaki-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party has announced plans to appeal, emphasising that, despite the setback, the Kabiru Turaki-led faction, which emerged from the Ibadan Convention, is legally intact and unshaken.
PDP Prolonged Internal Dispute
The PDP has been struggling for balance since the 2023 general elections, after the party lost the poll to the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, a result that was largely caused by the disagreement between the party’s candidate during the poll and the current minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesome Wike, whose loyalists worked against the emergence of their party candidate.
After the 2023 general election, the party faced internal conflict and leadership divisions. The split was primarily between Nyesom loyalists, including Sam Anyanwu, Samuel Ortom, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Ayodele Fayose, and Okezie Ikpeazu.
The opposing faction comprises Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, Bauchi State’s Bala Mohammed, former acting National Chairman Umar Damagum, and Abdulrahman Mohammed, the National Vice Chairman (North Central).
As internal challenges led to defections of key members and governors, the PDP moved to resolve its issues by scheduling its National Convention for November 15th and 16th in Ibadan, Oyo State.
Before the convention, legal battles and court orders prevented the party from proceeding. A Federal High Court in Abuja, responding to complaints from three party members, ordered the PDP to cancel its planned convention due to non-compliance with party rules, the Nigerian Constitution, and the Electoral Act.
Justice James Omotosho ruled that INEC should neither attend nor recognize any PDP national convention lacking due process.
Additionally, the Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the PDP to halt its planned National Convention. This decision stems from a lawsuit filed by Sule Lamido, the former Governor of Jigawa State, who argued that he was unjustly denied a form to run for the position of PDP National Chairman.
Justice Peter Lifu of the High Court also barred the INEC from supervising, monitoring or recognising the outcome of the scheduled convention where the PDP intended to elect its national officers.
However, the Makinde-led faction got a counter order, where Justice A.L. Akintola of the Oyo State High Court issued an order that the national convention must proceed with the convention as planned, ordering the electoral commission to attend, monitor, and observe the convention.
During the convention, the party elected the new NWC, making Kabiru Turaki the National Chairman, among others. The convention also announced the surprising expulsion of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike; the former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose; and the former national secretary of the party, Samuel Anyanwu, for “anti-party activities”.
In a dramatic reaction to their expulsion, Wike and his allies also expelled Governors Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, and Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State. They also expelled former Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Senator Adolphus Wabara; former National Vice Chairman of the party, Bode George, and the recently elected party National Chairman, Kabiru Turaki, SAN.
During the crisis, factions led by FCT Minister Wike and Governor Makinde clashed at the party’s National Secretariat in Abuja, prompting police to secure the premises to prevent violence.
Labour Party’s Legal Tussle
In a similar development to the PDP internal crisis, the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on January 21st, also affirmed the ruling that the tenure of Julius Abure has elapsed as the national chairman of the Labour Party, ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission to recognise the Senator Esther Nenadi Usman-led caretaker committee as the lawful leadership of the political party.
The court made the ruling in a judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu on Wednesday, relying on the ruling of the Supreme Court’s judgment on April 4, 2025, which declared the caretaker committee leadership as the valid leadership of the party pending the conduct of its national convention.
Justice Lifu of the court ruled that Abure’s tenure had expired, thereby rejecting the argument that the matter was an internal dispute and was beyond judicial review. He declared that the creation of a caretaker committee was “a necessity” resulting from the Supreme Court’s ruling. The court recalled that the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party had previously decided to remove Abure due to a leadership crisis and then established a 29-member caretaker committee led by Usman.
That decision emerged from an expanded stakeholders’ meeting hosted in Umuahia by Abia State Governor Alex Otti and chaired by the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
Not satisfied with the decision of the stakeholders’ meeting. Abure challenged his removal and sought judicial validation of his position in a separate suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1271/2024.
In an affidavit, he stated that he was lawfully elected acting national chairman at an NEC meeting in Benin City on March 29, 2021, following the death of the party’s national chairman. He added that during the NEC meeting in Asaba, Delta State, on 18 April 2023, tenures of state chairmen whose terms had expired were renewed, anti-party members were expelled, and vacancies filled in.
He further argued that he was subsequently elected national chairman at the party’s national convention on 27 March 2024 in Nnewi, Anambra State. He noted that under his leadership, the party produced governorship candidates in Edo and Ondo states.
Although the High Court and Court of Appeal had earlier upheld Mr Abure’s position and ordered INEC to recognise him, the Supreme Court later overturned the rulings.
In the lead decision, delivered by a justice on the panel, Inyang Okoro, the Supreme Court allowed the appeal filed by Ms Usman, chairman of the caretaker committee, and Darlington Nwokocha, committee secretary.
In addition, the Supreme Court dismissed Mr Abure’s cross-appeal and advised political parties to strictly follow their internal policies when selecting officers. Additionally, the court had ordered officials whose terms had expired to resign.
