The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal filed by the faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by former Minister of Special Duties, Kabiru Turaki, SAN, challenging the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court to hear a suit over the party’s planned November 15 and 16, 2026, convention in Ibadan.
A three-man panel of the Appeal Court is delivering judgment in nine harmonised appeals brought by the Turaki-led faction of the PDP, challenging, among others, a court order barring the party from holding its planned November 14 and 15, 2025, National Convention.
In a unanimous decision, the appellate court affirmed the judgment of the lower court, which barred the Independent National Electoral Commission from validating the proposed convention.
The court held that the Federal High Court was competent to entertain the suit, rejecting the argument by the Turaki-led faction that the dispute was purely an internal affair of the party.
According to the panel, 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.”
The court subsequently dismissed the appeal and awarded ₦2 million in costs against the appellants.
The PUNCH