PDP Congresses Remain Valid As Katsina Court Dismisses Aggrieved Members’ Suit

A former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Mustapha Inuwa alongside eight other PDP stalwarts had dragged the party’s leadership before the court over its refusal to sell Expression of Interest forms to some party members.

The plaintiffs said they filed the suit on behalf of 7,905 other members of the party who were aggrieved with how the congresses were conducted.

The PDP, a defendant in the suit, filed an objection through its counsel seeking the court to strike out the suit on grounds of lack of jurisdiction and lack of competence by the plaintiffs to file the suit.

While delivering judgment on the matter, the presiding Judge, Justice Abbas Bawale, struck out the application filed by the plaintiffs because the court lacks jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

Bawale, who cited different court pronouncements on related matters, ruled that party congresses are an internal affair of the party which the court should not meddle into.

While citing provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022, as Amended, the judge said the court only entertains cases bordering on grievances as a result of party primaries.

On the argument by the defendant that the plaintiffs had not exhausted internal mechanisms set up by the party to resolve grievances between its members; Justice Bawale determined that the plaintiffs had exhausted all avenues for resolving the grievance before heading to the court.

However, counsel to the plaintiffs, Mustafa Mahuta, has expressed his clients’ dissatisfaction with the judgement.

Mahuta said clients would appeal the court’s decision at the appellate court.