The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted an accelerated hearing of the appeal filed by the Kabir Turaki-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) regarding the leadership crisis rocking the party.
Judge Lawan Garba, who presided over the five-member bench, said: “We find it expedient to grant this request.” He then fixed 22 April for hearing.
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The Turaki-led faction, unrecognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), approached the Supreme Court for an accelerated hearing of its appeal as it races against time to meet key deadlines in the scramble to field candidates for the 2027 general elections.
Mr Turaki was present in court alongside the Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, to observe the Supreme Court proceedings. Mr Makinde is one of the two remaining governors still belonging to the party, which has been hit by waves of defections since last year.
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Also present in court was Samuel Anyanwu, who was suspended by the Turaki-led faction but recently re-elected by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike-aligned group as the national secretary of the party. The Wike-backed faction of the national working committee of the PDPD is, for now, recognised by INEC as the legitimate leadership of the party pending the outcome of ongoing litigation over the party’s leadership disputes.
The lawyers to the appellant requested the accelerated hearing given the exceptional nature of the case, citing an affidavit of extreme urgency accompanying the application.
All the respondents, apart from Abdulrahman Mohammed, the new PDP chairman backed by Mr Wike, did not object to the request. But the lawyers asked for 10 days to file their respondents’ brief.
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Mr Mohammed was not in court, nor was he represented by any lawyer.
Thereafter, the panel granted the request and asked all respondents to file their respective brief within five days.
The court fixed 22 April for the hearing of both matters.
Background
Mr Turaki’s faction filed the appeal before the Supreme Court to challenge the 9 April decision of the Court of Appeal in Abuja invalidating the national convention of organised by the Turaki-led faction which was held in Ibadan, Oyo State, between 15 and 16 November 2025.
A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal unanimously dismissed the appeals brought before it by the Mr Turaki-led faction of the party.
The court also awarded N2 million as cost against the appellants comprising Mr Turaki and other members of the National Working Committee (NWC).
In its unanimous decision, the appellate court upheld the judgement of the Federal High Court, which restrained the INEC from recognising or validating the proposed convention.
The court held that the Federal High Court had jurisdiction to hear the case, rejecting the argument by the Turaki faction that the dispute was purely an internal affair of the party.
The panel said the appellants could not “repackage a clear violation of the party constitution and that of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as an internal party affair.”
While delivering the judgment, Judge Uchechukwu Onyemenam of the Court of Appeal also held that the PDP violated constitutional provisions required before such a convention could become valid.
He said no valid notice of the convention was served on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as required by law.
The judge held that the case of the aggrieved PDP members who instituted the suit against the party was not about internal party affairs, as erroneously argued, but a bid to compel INEC to comply with its statutory functions in relation to party conventions.
The appellate court also noted that valid congresses were not held in more than 14 states as required by law before the 2025 convention was conducted.
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Having failed to comply with the relevant laws, the Court of Appeal said the Federal High Court was right in assuming jurisdiction and granting a restraining order against INEC from accepting or recognising the outcome of the PDP 2025 national convention.
The Turaki-led faction held its convention in Ibadan, Oyo State, in 2025, which was challenged by members of the rival group.
Different Federal High Court judges have since nullified the convention and all the decisions taken there. The decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal in Abuja, whose decision the Turaki faction is now challenging at the Supreme Court.
The PDP has grappled with various crises since losing power to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2015.
The party’s crises intensified after the 2023 general elections after disagreement over the zoning of its presidential ticket gradually tore its to factions.
Since last year, the party has suffered waves of defection that have reduced the number of states under its control to two, just as the ranks of its lawmakers in the National Assembly and across state Houses of Assembly have reduced drastically.
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