By KatsinaTimes | Abuja, April 14, 2026 –
The Supreme Court has fixed April 22, 2026, to hear two separate appeals filed by the Kabiru Turaki-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The appeals seek to overturn the judgment of the Court of Appeal which invalidated the party’s Ibadan National Convention held on Nov. 15 and 16, 2025.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Lawal Garba, granted the application by the Turaki faction for accelerated hearing and approved a departure from standard procedures to shorten the time for filing briefs of argument.
In the first appeal, filed against a rival PDP faction loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, the court directed that hearing notices be served on the seventh respondent, Mohammed Abdulrahman, who was not represented during Tuesday’s proceedings.
Counsel to the Turaki faction, Chris Uche (SAN), informed the court of pending applications and emphasised the urgency of the matter in view of the timetable of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2027 general elections. He also filed an affidavit of extreme urgency.
However, counsel to Austin Nwachukwu and two others, Emmanuel Ukala (SAN), requested 15 days to respond, citing the need to obtain relevant records of the Court of Appeal judgment nullifying the Ibadan convention.
The Supreme Court, however, directed all nine respondents to file their replies within five days each and adjourned the matter until April 22, 2026, for hearing.
In the second appeal, involving the Turaki-led faction against former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, and others, the court also granted accelerated hearing and fixed the same date for proceedings.
Lamido had earlier challenged his exclusion from the party’s national chairmanship contest, prompting Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court to halt the convention.
Earlier rulings by the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal had largely gone against the Turaki faction, nullifying the Ibadan convention, restraining INEC from recognising its outcome, and, in some instances, restricting access to the party’s national secretariat.
The Turaki faction, however, urged the Supreme Court to set aside the decisions, arguing that the dispute concerns internal party affairs which are not subject to judicial intervention, and that due process was followed. (NAN)
