The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday held a meeting with leaders of political parties in Abuja, as part of the preparations for upcoming elections and concerns over internal party democracy.
The meeting, chaired by INEC Chairman Joash Amupitan, was attended by representatives of several political parties, including a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by Abdulrahman Mohammed and backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Discussions at the meeting focused on preparations for the February 21 FCT area council elections, the revalidation of the voter register, declining voter turnout, and measures to strengthen internal party democracy ahead of the 2027 general election.
However, the Kabiru Turaki-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP was notably absent, underscoring the deepening leadership crisis within the opposition party.
The PDP has been polarised into two rival factions following disputes over its leadership and the conduct of its national convention. Last month, a Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State, nullified the party’s national convention held in the state on November 15, 2025.
In a ruling delivered on Friday, Justice Uche Agomoh declined the Turaki-led NWC’s request for an order compelling INEC to recognise the convention. The judge barred the Turaki-led leadership from parading itself as the party’s national executives, holding that the convention was conducted in flagrant disobedience of subsisting court orders.
Justice Agomoh ruled that the PDP could not violate court directives and subsequently seek judicial validation for actions taken in defiance of those orders. He further held that the party could only operate through a caretaker committee until a lawful national convention is convened.
Turaki, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), faulted the judgement, arguing that the court granted reliefs that were neither sought nor canvassed by any of the parties. He disclosed that the party had filed a notice of appeal and a motion for a stay of execution of the judgement, insisting that the convention remains “legally intact, firmly in place, and fully committed to the ongoing rebirth” of the PDP.
The disputed convention was backed by Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed. It followed a series of conflicting court rulings, with some Federal High Courts in Abuja halting the convention over alleged breaches of the PDP constitution and electoral laws, while the Oyo State High Court in Ibadan cleared the party to proceed and directed INEC to monitor the exercise.
Wike and his allies were expelled from the PDP at the convention. The group subsequently formed a parallel National Working Committee, Board of Trustees (BoT), and National Executive Committee (NEC).
Earlier in December, INEC rejected a request to recognise the Turaki-led NWC, citing multiple subsisting court judgements as the basis for its decision.
