COURT DISMISSES ANYANWU'S SUIT OVER PDP NATIONAL SECRETARY POSITION, CITES ABUSE OF PROCESS

Abuja, Nigeria — The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Senator Samuel Anyanwu seeking to retain his position as National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), describing the action as an abuse of court process.

Delivering judgment on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, Justice M. G. Umar struck out the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/254/2025, effectively ending Anyanwu’s prolonged legal battle to remain in the party’s National Working Committee (NWC).

Justice Umar held that the issues raised in the case fell squarely within the internal affairs of a political party, an area the courts are barred from interfering in, in line with established Supreme Court precedents. He noted that the judiciary cannot dictate how political parties manage their leadership or internal disputes.

The court further ruled that the suit was an abuse of judicial process, pointing out that the matter had already been litigated extensively at different levels of the Nigerian court system, including the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

On the question of tenure, the judge ruled that Anyanwu’s four-year term, which began in 2021, had legally expired. Justice Umar held that there was no legal justification for him to continue in office beyond the end of that mandate, particularly after the PDP’s most recent national convention.

The judgment follows the PDP’s National Convention held in Ibadan in November 2025, where a new National Working Committee emerged, with Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, SAN, elected as National Chairman.

The convention also led to the expulsion of several senior party members, including Anyanwu, over alleged anti-party activities.

Anyanwu had approached the court seeking to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognizing any PDP correspondence not signed by him as National Secretary. However, Justice Umar’s ruling has effectively nullified that request.

The dispute dates back to 2023, when Anyanwu stepped aside from his position to contest the Imo State governorship election. His attempt to return to office afterward sparked internal disagreements, including moves by a faction of the party to replace him with Sunday Udeh-Okoye.

Although the Supreme Court briefly reinstated Anyanwu in March 2025 on jurisdictional grounds, the PDP’s November 2025 convention produced a new leadership structure that the courts have now declined to disturb.

With the dismissal of the suit, the Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee remains the recognized administrative leadership of the PDP. Senator Anyanwu is yet to indicate whether he will appeal the latest ruling.