The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit seeking to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise the Kabiru Turaki-led interim National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), dealing a significant setback to the faction’s leadership claims.
The suit, filed by the Adolphus Wabara-led Board of Trustees (BoT) of the factional PDP, sought a court order directing INEC to acknowledge the Turaki-led leadership as the legitimate national executive of the party.
Delivering judgment, Justice Salim Ibrahim dismissed the case, effectively declining to grant the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs.
The ruling has also raised fresh questions over the validity of key decisions taken by the Turaki-led faction, including the nomination of former President Goodluck Jonathan as its presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
In May, the faction announced Jonathan as its consensus presidential candidate after a special national convention held at the party’s secretariat in Area 10, Garki, Abuja, where delegates reportedly ratified his nomination.
With the court refusing to compel INEC to recognise the faction’s leadership, the legal standing of its decisions, including Jonathan’s nomination, is now uncertain unless overturned on appeal or validated through subsequent legal or political processes.
The judgment is expected to further deepen the leadership crisis within the PDP as rival factions continue to battle for control of the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.
