The faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has dismissed the recent judgment of the Oyo State High Court, which upheld the party’s November 2025 convention, describing it as inconsequential and of no binding effect.
The PDP caretaker committee led by Mohammed Abdulrahman and Senator Samuel Anyanwu stated this in a statement issued on Friday by its National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Mohammed.
The faction insisted that the November 2025 convention remained invalid.
On Friday, the Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan upheld the PDP convention conducted on November 15 and 16, 2025, during which a National Working Committee led by Tanimu Turaki (SAN) was elected.
Justice Ladiran Akintola of Court 5 delivered the ruling after determining an application seeking joinder in the matter.
The court granted all 13 reliefs sought by the claimant, Folahan Malomo Adelabi, through his counsel, Musbau Adetunmbi.
Reacting to the ruling, the Wike-backed faction described the decision as lacking legal effect, particularly as it relates to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
“The judgment reportedly delivered by the Oyo State High Court is an inconsequential development and is best described as a mere academic exercise,” the statement read.
It added that the court had earlier granted an interim order permitting the Damagum-led leadership to proceed with what it described as the “Amala Convention” despite two subsisting Federal High Court judgments.
The faction stated, “For the avoidance of doubt, the said judgment does not bind the Independent National Electoral Commission, as INEC was neither joined nor represented as a party in the suit.
“To say the least, INEC challenged the jurisdiction of the Oyo State High Court, which the court later agreed to in a ruling delivered by the judge and subsequently struck out the name of INEC.”
The faction further argued that any judgment not binding on INEC would be of no consequence regarding party leadership recognition.
“A judgment that does not bind INEC is of no consequence whatsoever as far as the issues at stake are concerned. The judgment has no legal effect whatsoever on the conduct, monitoring, or recognition of any party convention purported to have been held on the 15th and 16th of November 2026,” it stated.
It maintained that INEC had already complied with two subsisting judgments of the Federal High Court in Abuja restraining it from attending or recognising the convention.
The faction also referenced a Federal High Court ruling in Ibadan, which nullified the convention and restrained Kabiru Turaki and his associates from parading themselves as national officers of the party.
Crisis Deepens Ahead Of 2027
On January 30, a Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan nullified the PDP National Convention conducted on November 15, 2025, and ordered Turaki and others to stop parading themselves as national officers.
Before that judgment, PDP governors had backed the Ibadan convention and overseen a leadership transition from former Chairman Umar Damagum to Turaki.
However, a Wike-aligned faction constituted a 13-member caretaker committee on December 8, naming Mohammed as Acting National Chairman and Anyanwu as Acting Secretary with a 60-day mandate.
Attempts by both camps to convene at Wadata Plaza on November 18, 2025, degenerated into disorder, leading to police sealing the PDP National Secretariat.
Both factions subsequently approached INEC for recognition, but the commission declined to recognise either side, triggering protracted legal battles ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Wike-backed caretaker committee has since announced that a fresh National Convention to elect new party leaders would be held in Abuja from March 29 to 30.
Meanwhile, the Court of Appeal, which heard consolidated cases relating to the PDP leadership crisis on February 12, has reserved judgment, with a date to be communicated to the parties.