The internal crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) took a major turn on Tuesday as loyalists of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking to nullify the party’s national convention held on November 15–16 in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The move marks the latest chapter in the long-running power struggle within the party as two major factions—one loyal to Wike and the other loyal to Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum—continue to battle for control of the PDP’s national structure.
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2501/2025, the plaintiffs are the PDP itself, Acting National Chairman Mohammed Abdulrahman, and National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu. They are all members of the Wike-backed faction of the party.
The plaintiffs want the court to declare the Ibadan convention “null, void, and of no effect,” insisting that the event violated several existing court orders. They also want the court to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognizing any officers elected during the convention or any decisions taken there, including the suspension of key party members.
The lawsuit lists several top PDP figures—including Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum, former Minister Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, and many others—as defendants.
In their originating summons, the plaintiffs said the convention was held despite three subsisting Federal High Court decisions that they claim clearly stopped the PDP from organising any national convention.
They cited:
The October 31 judgment in FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025 (Austine Nwachukwu v INEC & Ors)
The November 11 interim order and November 14 judgment in FHC/ABJ/CS/2299/2025 (Sule Lamido v PDP & Ors)
The May 31, 2023 judgment in FHC/ABJ/CS/139/2023 (Nyesom Wike v PDP & Ors)
According to the plaintiffs, these court rulings either nullified the 21-day notice required for any national convention or directly restrained the PDP from holding the Ibadan gathering.
They said the defendants ignored all these judgments and went ahead to organise the convention, elect new officers, and expel some members from the party.
In an affidavit attached to the suit, National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu made fresh allegations against the group led by Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum.
He claimed that on November 18, two days after the convention, some defendants tried to “forcibly take control” of the PDP national secretariat at Wadata Plaza and Legacy House in Abuja.
According to him, the police and the Department of State Services (DSS), instead of enforcing the earlier court orders, sealed both buildings and blocked him and other officials loyal to the Wike faction from accessing their offices.
“The 2nd to 4th defendants have now sealed up the premises of the 1st plaintiff and denied the 2nd and 3rd plaintiffs access to their offices,” Anyanwu said in the sworn statement.
He argued that this action amounted to using security agencies to intimidate officials who were backed by existing court judgments.
The plaintiffs presented a long list of requests for the court to consider.
Among them are:
A declaration that INEC, the Inspector-General of Police, the FCT Commissioner of Police, and the DSS are legally required to enforce all earlier court orders relating to the PDP crisis.
An order restraining INEC and all security agencies from recognising anything that came out of the Ibadan convention.
An order stopping the 6th to 25th defendants—mostly Damagum allies—from parading themselves as PDP national officers.
A directive compelling security agencies to protect the plaintiffs and allow them full access to PDP headquarters at Wadata Plaza and Legacy House.
An order forbidding INEC from accepting any attempt to change the PDP’s official address from its Abuja locations.
The plaintiffs also asked the court to determine whether any authority or organisation, including INEC, can legally recognise the Ibadan convention in view of the existing court rulings, the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act, and the PDP Constitution.
The PDP has been battling internal disagreements since before the 2023 general elections, with the dispute intensifying afterwards. The conflict largely centres on control of the party structure, the future of the party’s leadership, and disagreements between key political figures.
Nyesom Wike, former governor of Rivers State and now FCT Minister, has had an open rivalry with several senior PDP members, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. The party has struggled to unite its factions since the 2022 presidential primaries.
The crisis deepened following the suspension of some party officials, court cases challenging leadership positions, and disagreements over whether Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum should remain in office.
The Ibadan convention was meant to be a step toward stabilising the party and electing substantive national officers. However, the Wike-backed faction says the event only worsened the crisis because it allegedly violated existing court orders.
As of Tuesday evening, judiciary officials confirmed that the case has not yet been assigned to a judge and hearing dates have not been fixed.
The lawsuit threatens to deepen the division within the party, as both factions claim legal backing and accuse each other of acting against the law.
If the court sides with the Wike faction, the Ibadan convention could be nullified, and all officers elected there may lose legitimacy. This would return the party to an earlier leadership structure, likely strengthening Wike’s influence.
However, if the court rules that the convention was valid, the Damagum faction may consolidate control of the party.
