PDP Leadership Crisis: Supreme Court Reserves Judgment In Anyanwu’s Appeal

The Supreme Court has reserved judgment in an appeal filed by Senator Samuel Anyanwu challenging his removal as the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The five-member panel of the apex court led by Justice Musa Awani Abba-Aji reserved judgment to a date to be communicated to the parties.

Anyanwu, who resigned to contest the last Imo governorship election, sued the PDP leadership for blocking him from reclaiming the office after failing in his gubernatorial quest.

Following his resignation, Aniagu Emmanuel initiated a suit at the Federal High Court, Enugu, insisting that Anyanwu should not remain on the bench having resigned from his office.

The Federal High Court, Enugu, subsequently upheld Chief Sunday Udo Okoye as PDP National Secretary.

At Monday’s proceedings, Anyanwu urged the Supreme Court to void and set aside the judgments of the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal in Enugu, which upheld his removal from office.

He insisted that having lost his gubernatorial bid in 2023, he should be allowed to retain the same office he resigned from.

However, counsel to Aniagu Emmanuel, Paul Erokoro, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, told the justices that Anyanwu’s prayer violated the constitution of the PDP, adding that having resigned as the National Secretary to contest another election, he cannot be allowed to return to the office.

PDP and its acting national chairman, Illiya Damagun, who are the 2nd and 3rd respondents in the appeal, did not file any process for or against Anyanwu’s suit.

However, the 4th respondent, national vice chairman South-East, Ali Odefa, objected to Anyanwu’s bid to return to the office of the National Secretary.

Odefa, who was represented by lawyer Okwudili Anozie, urged the apex court to dismiss Anyanwu’s suit for being frivolous, baseless and lacking in merit.

Following an enquiry by Justice Emmanuel Akomaye Agim to know whether the Supreme Court has jurisdiction in the leadership of the PDP, Paul Erokoro replied that the court had not been consistent in its decisions on such matters.

Erokoro informed the court of a matter which involved a former national chairman of PDP, Senator Alimodu Sheriff, where there was a similar leadership dispute, stating that the Supreme Court assumed jurisdiction and delivered judgment that settled the matter against Sherriff.

Earlier, the court had dismissed a request brought before it by Anyanwu seeking to stay the execution of the judgments of the Court of Appeal and that of the Federal High Court that removed him as the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The apex court threw out the request when Anyanwu, through his lawyer, Kingsley Njemanze, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, applied for the withdrawal of the request for stay of execution on behalf of his client.

Recall that the Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu had last December upheld a High Court’s decision that sacked Anyanwu as the National Secretary of the PDP.

The appellate court subsequently upheld Chief Sunday Ude-Okoye as the substantive National Secretary of the main opposition party.

In the lead judgment delivered by Justice Ridwan Abdullahi, the Court of Appeal held that Anyanwu‘s appeal was incompetent and lacking in merit.

According to the appellate court, the appellant violated the PDP’s constitution by laying claim to the National Secretary position, having contested and emerged as the PDP candidate in the 2024 governorship election in Imo State.

Dissatisfied, Anyanwu in February, approached the apex court to set aside the judgment of the two lower courts and recognise him as the authentic National Secretary of the PDP.