Appeal Court Upholds Judgment Nullifying PDP National Convention That Produced Tanimu Turaki as Chairman

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has affirmed the judgment of the Federal High Court which nullified the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national convention held on November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, Oyo State, where Tanimu Turaki emerged as the National Chairman of the party.

Delivering the judgment, a three-member panel of the appellate court led by Justice Mohammed Danjuma upheld the decision of the trial court presided over by Justice James Omotosho, which had earlier restrained the conduct of the convention.
The appellate court agreed with the lower court that the party failed to conduct the required congresses in accordance with its constitutional provisions. It therefore dismissed the argument by the Tanimu Turaki faction that the matter was purely an internal affair of the party and not subject to judicial intervention.
In an earlier ruling on preliminary objections, the appellate court held that the Federal High Court had the necessary jurisdiction to entertain the suit challenging the legality of the Ibadan convention.
Justice Danjuma, who delivered the lead judgment, ruled that the evidence presented by the aggrieved PDP members showed that congresses were not held in some states of the federation, in violation of the law.