Former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has expressed deep regret over having to drag the People\u2019s Democratic Party (PDP) \u2014 his political family for over two decades \u2014 to court following his exclusion from purchasing the nomination form for the position of National Chairman ahead of the party\u2019s 2025 National Convention.<\/p>\n
Lamido\u2019s reaction came shortly after the Federal High Court in Abuja fixed Thursday, November 13, for judgment in the suit he filed against the PDP. The case challenges what he describes as his \u201cunlawful exclusion\u201d from contesting for the top party position.<\/p>\n
Order from the Oyo State High Court (Ibadan)<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 On 3 November 2025, the Oyo State High Court, sitting in Ibadan and presided over by Justice A. L. Akintola, in Suit No. I\/1336\/2025 (filed by Folahan Malamo Adelabi, an aspirant for the office of Deputy National Organising Secretary of the PDP), granted an ex-parte order that:<\/p>\n \u2022 Cleared the PDP to proceed with its national convention scheduled for 15\u201316 November 2025 in Ibadan.<\/p>\n \u2022 Ordered the PDP (and its\u00a0 agents\/servants\/officers) not to truncate, frustrate, or interfere with the convention\u2019s approved \u201cGuidelines, Timetable and Schedule of Activities\u201d.<\/p>\n \u2022 Directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to monitor\/observe the convention, to ensure compliance with electoral laws.<\/p>\n \u2022 Adjourned the hearing of the motion on notice to 10 November 2025.<\/p>\n Implications:<\/strong> These federal court orders pose a direct legal obstacle for the PDP\u2019s convention. Even though the Ibadan\/State Court gave clearance, the federal court\u2019s orders create conflicting mandates and raise serious questions of jurisdiction, enforceability, and which court\u2019s order prevails. The fact that INEC is specifically restrained from recognising outcomes means any convention held in defiance of that order risks being functionally invalid.<\/p>\n \u2022 You have two courts of co-ordinate jurisdiction issuing contrasting orders:<\/p>\n \u2022 The Oyo State High Court (Ibadan) supports the convention under conditions.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Federal High Court (Abuja) halts the convention pending compliance and litigation.<\/p>\n \u2022 The main legal issues: Whether the PDP complied with its own Constitution, the Electoral Act\/1999 Constitution, and INEC guidelines (e.g., valid state congresses, 21-day notice, proper timetable).<\/p>\n \u2022 Whether INEC\u2019s role (monitoring, recognising outcomes) is being properly engaged or is being circumvented.<\/p>\n \u2022 Which court\u2019s order takes precedence \u2014 given federal vs state jurisdiction in party and elections law.<\/p>\n \u2022 Practical consequence: The PDP is in a legal limbo. If it proceeds with the convention relying on the Ibadan court order, it risks running foul of the Abuja court orders; if it waits on compliance\/litigation, its preparations are delayed and its internal contest (chairmanship, leadership) is stalled.<\/p>\n Sequence of Court Orders in Abuja<\/strong><\/p>\n 1. First Restraining Order \u2013 October 31 (Justice James Omotosho) Grounds<\/strong>: The court found that the PDP failed to issue the mandatory 21-day notice to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as required by law.<\/p>\n Order:<\/strong> INEC was also barred from supervising or recognising the outcome of any convention held in violation of this provision.<\/p>\n Implication<\/strong>: This order effectively placed a legal freeze on the convention process, forcing the PDP to suspend all preparatory activities until further notice.<\/p>\n 2. Second Interim Order<\/strong> \u2013 November 1 (Justice Peter Lifu) Lamido\u2019s Argument: He alleged that the PDP\u2019s refusal to sell him the nomination form for national chairman violated the party\u2019s constitution and denied him a fair opportunity to contest.<\/p>\n Court\u2019s Ruling:<\/strong> Justice Lifu held that Lamido\u2019s application was meritorious, noting that: the PDP failed to properly publish the convention timetable as required by its own rules.<\/p>\n The balance of convenience favoured Lamido, who stood to suffer greater harm if unlawfully excluded.<\/p>\n The court also restrained INEC from monitoring or recognising the convention\u2019s outcome until the case was decided.<\/p>\n Condition<\/strong>: Lamido was directed to undertake to pay damages if his suit was later found frivolous.<\/p>\n 3. Hearing and Judgment Date<\/strong> \u2013 November 13 (Justice Lifu) Lamido\u2019s Reaction:<\/strong> \u201cI Feel Like Crying\u201d \u201cEven though the court has stopped the convention, I feel like crying. I never imagined I would have to go to court against my own party. When brothers fight, the bond of trust and unity is broken.\u201d<\/p>\n Lamido, a founding member of the PDP and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, recalled his long association with the party, which had elevated him to several positions. Yet, he said he was left with no choice but to seek justice after being denied access to the chairmanship nomination form.<\/p>\n Both Omotosho\u2019s and Lifu\u2019s orders effectively suspend the PDP\u2019s 2025 national convention. The party cannot proceed or release a new schedule until the legal questions are resolved.<\/p>\n The restraining orders also bar INEC from monitoring or recognising any parallel or unauthorized convention, ensuring that any leadership elected in defiance of the orders will be illegitimate.<\/p>\n Lamido\u2019s suit exposes deep internal divisions within the PDP and raises constitutional issues regarding transparency, fairness, and inclusivity in party processes.<\/p>\n If the injunctions persist, the PDP may face a leadership vacuum or factional crisis, potentially weakening its preparations ahead of the 2027 general elections.<\/p>\n In essence, two separate but converging court rulings \u2014 by Justices Omotosho and Lifu \u2014 have stopped the PDP national convention, pending the determination of Sule Lamido\u2019s lawsuit. While Lamido insists his action is to restore justice and due process within the party, the development highlights a growing tension between party loyalty and legal accountability within Nigeria\u2019s major opposition party.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has expressed deep regret over having to drag the People\u2019s Democratic Party (PDP) \u2014 his political family for over two decades \u2014 to court following his exclusion from purchasing the nomination form for the position of National Chairman ahead of the party\u2019s 2025 National Convention. Lamido\u2019s reaction came […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":92431,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,8],"tags":[913,2570,82,238,2490,7475],"class_list":["post-95971","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-politics","tag-abuja","tag-crying","tag-ibadan","tag-lamido","tag-omotosho","tag-quagmire"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95971","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=95971"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95971\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/92431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=95971"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=95971"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=95971"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nThis order effectively gave judicial backing for the convention to proceed in Ibadan, subject to the timetable and oversight conditions. It contrasts with earlier federal court orders that sought to halt things. The PDP leadership could thus claim a state-court mandate to move ahead. But it also established conditions (monitoring by INEC, adherence to timetable) that limit arbitrary deviation.<\/p>\n
\nJustice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, first restrained the PDP from conducting its planned national convention slated for November 15\u201316 in Ibadan, Oyo State.<\/p>\n
\nA day later, in a separate but related proceeding, Justice Peter Lifu also issued an interim injunction restraining the PDP from proceeding with its national convention pending the hearing of Lamido\u2019s substantive suit.<\/p>\n
\nAfter adopting written arguments from:
\nJeph Njikonye, SAN (for Lamido),
\nOmokayode Dada, SAN (for the PDP),
\nJoseph Daudu, SAN (for joined parties),
\nand INEC\u2019s counsel, Justice Lifu reserved judgment for Thursday, November 13, thereby sustaining the restraining order until the court delivers its final decision.<\/p>\n
\nSpeaking with journalists after the proceedings, Lamido described his legal action as painful but necessary:<\/p>\n