Former Jigawa State Governor and ex-Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sule Lamido, has expressed deep regret over his decision to drag the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) before the Federal High Court in Abuja, after being excluded from the party’s upcoming 2025 National Convention.
Lamido, who has been a long-standing member of the PDP, said that while the court’s decision to restrain the PDP from proceeding with the convention should ordinarily bring him satisfaction, he nonetheless feels “sad and heartbroken”that the situation compelled him to seek judicial intervention.
“In this case, if my party lost, I also lost. I feel like crying taking this path. When we fight as brothers, the trust is lost; the bond of brotherhood is also lost,” Lamido told journalists after the ruling.
Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court issued an interim order on Tuesday restraining the PDP from holding its convention, scheduled for November 15–16 in Ibadan, Oyo State. The court also barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from monitoring or recognizing any outcome of the planned event.
According to the court, the PDP failed to comply with necessary procedural and legal requirements for conducting national conventions, including publishing the timetable for members’ notice. Justice Lifu ruled that the “balance of convenience” favoured Lamido, noting that he would suffer greater harm if unlawfully excluded.
The former governor had earlier accused the PDP of denying him the opportunity to purchase the nomination formfor the party’s national chairmanship position.
Justice Lifu emphasized that the rule of law must be upheld in a democracy, warning that failure to follow due process would endanger democratic governance itself. He added that Lamido’s undertaking to pay damages if his suit proved frivolous demonstrated good faith.
Meanwhile, both parties have adopted their written briefs, and the court is set to deliver judgment on November 13 in the substantive case.
The latest order follows an earlier ruling by Justice James Omotosho on October 31, which also restrained INEC from recognizing any PDP convention that did not comply with the statutory 21-day notice requirement for congresses and conventions.
The ongoing legal disputes have cast uncertainty over the PDP’s plans to elect new national officers ahead of the 2025 general convention
