The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s disgraced former national secretary, Samuel Anyanwu, filed an appeal contesting his dismissal from office, but the Supreme Court of Nigeria has postponed decision.
Anyanwu is attempting to reverse the Court of Appeal, Enugu Division’s decision, which maintained a previous Federal High Court verdict that nullified him and declared Sunday Udeh-Okoye to be the legitimate PDP National Secretary.
Through his attorney, Ken Njemanze (SAN), Anyanwu filed a ten-ground appeal, pleading with the Supreme Court to grant his request and overturn the lower court’s ruling.
Ali Odefa (PDP National Vice Chairman, Southeast Zone), Iliya Damagun (PDP National Chairman), and Aniagu Emmanuel (PDP) are among the respondents in the case (SC/CV/82/2025).
Party Leadership Issues Are Not Justiciable, According to Anyanwu
Anyanwu argued that by sustaining the Federal High Court’s authority over what he called the PDP’s internal affairs, the Court of Appeal had committed a legal error.
“Party leadership and membership issues are not subject to the rule of law and are not within the purview of any court,” he contended.
The lower courts were also criticized by him for not figuring out if the plaintiff had used up all of the PDP’s internal dispute resolution procedures prior to bringing the lawsuit.
Conflict Regarding Electoral Act Interpretation and Resignation
The question of whether Anyanwu had left his job was a major point of contention in the lawsuit. According to the lower courts, he essentially resigned when he ran for governor of Imo in 2024.
A four-year term for party officers is guaranteed by the PDP constitution, Anyanwu said, and the court erred in applying Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022, which calls for resignation prior to running for office.
Specific steps for leaving executive positions, such as resignation or removal, are outlined in the PDP constitution. Anyanwu argued that there was no foundation for the lower courts’ conclusions that I had left my position.
Respondents Request Appeal Rejected by Supreme Court
The respondents, represented by attorney Erokoro (SAN), requested the Supreme Court to reject Anyanwu’s appeal during the hearing.
Erokoro used Ali Modu Sheriff v. PDP to request that the court change its earlier ruling that party matters are internal and not subject to the courts. Because the constitution stipulates that you must retire before running for office, the lower court claims that he has resigned, Erokoro contended.
The Supreme Court panel, however, questioned whether the judiciary has the authority to choose the candidates for party position.
Njemanze (SAN) restated the lower courts’ lack of jurisdiction in his closing statement, saying, “My Lords, you have consistently held in all your judgments over the past year that leadership issues in political parties are not justiciable.” This case was outside the trial court’s and lower court’s jurisdiction.
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The panel, consisting of five members and presided over by Justice Uwani Musa Abba-Aji, reserved judgment until a future date that will be announced to the parties after Njemanze’s submission.
“The parties will be informed of the date of the judgment,” Justice Abba-Aji stated.
