After Weeks of Legal Tension, Court Delivers Verdict on PDP Leadership Crisis
Justice M. G. Umar of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has dismissed the case filed by Senator Samuel Anyanwu seeking to perpetuate himself in office as the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Egalitarian Voice.
In Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/254/2025 -Sen. Samuel Anyanwu vs. INEC & Ors, the court dismissed Senator’s claims regarding his right to the office of the National Secretary of the party. Senator Anyanwu had approached the court seeking an Order of injunction restraining his removal from office following a previous Supreme Court judgment that held that his stay in office is an internalaffair of thr Party, to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from accepting or acting upon any documents or correspondence from the PDP that did not bear his signature.
Reasons for the Ruling:
While the case underwent several procedural shifts, including being transferred from suspended Justice Inyang Ekwo to Justice M. G. Umar, the decision to dismiss the matter was primarily based on the following factors:
• Jurisdiction and Internal Party Affairs:
The court reaffirmed that the Nigerian judiciary consistently maintains that matters concerning the internal leadership and administration of a political party are non-justiciable. This principle, reinforced by recent Supreme Court precedents, dictates that courts should not interfere in how political parties choose their officers.
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• Abuse of Court Process:
The court noted the existence of multiple parallel litigations over the same subject matter across various levels of the judiciary, including High Courts, the Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court.
• Effluxion of his tenure of office. The court observed that Sen. Samuel Anyanwu was elected as National Secretary of the party in 2021 and cannot continue in office after the expiration of the term he was elected.
Current Status of PDP Leadership:
Although Senator Anyanwu has fought numerous legal battles to retain his seat, arguing that his term does not expire until December 2025, he was among the high-ranking members expelled from the party during the Ibadan National Convention in November 2025.
The PDP currently recognizes the Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee (NWC), which was duly elected during the Ibadan National Convention.
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