Justice Ladiran Akintola of the Oyo State High Court in Ibadan has affirmed the validity of the 2025 national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), held on November 15 and 16 in Ibadan.
The convention produced Kabiru Turaki as the party’s National Chairman.
In his ruling delivered on Friday, Justice Akintola held that the convention complied fully with constitutional and statutory provisions regulating political party elections in Nigeria. He stated that the exercise met the requirements of the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act 2022 (as amended), and other relevant electoral laws.
The judgment followed an amended originating summons filed by Misbau Adetunmbi, SAN, on behalf of the claimant, Folahan Adelabu.
According to the court, the convention was conducted by the party’s recognised leadership and adhered to due process. The judge found no evidence of procedural irregularities or legal violations in the conduct of the event.
During the proceedings, the court also dismissed a motion filed by Sunday Ibrahim, SAN, representing Austin Nwachukwu and two others. The application sought a stay of proceedings and suspension of the ruling but was deemed lacking in merit.
Earlier, Justice Akintola had rejected an application by the same counsel seeking to join his clients as parties in the suit, describing the request as unsubstantiated.
The ruling comes after a previous decision by the Federal High Court in Ibadan, where Justice Uche Agomoh had nullified the same convention. In that earlier judgment, the court restrained Turaki and other officials elected at the convention from presenting themselves as national officers of the party.
Justice Agomoh had also recognised the caretaker committee led by Mohammed Abdulrahman and Samuel Anyanwu as the legitimate National Working Committee (NWC), pending the conduct of a valid convention.
The latest High Court ruling now validates the Ibadan convention and the leadership that emerged from it, marking a significant development in the ongoing leadership dispute within the PDP.
