Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned the legal battle over the rightful National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to September 22, 2025.
The date was set for a definite hearing of all pending motions in the suit filed by embattled PDP National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu.
The adjournment followed a mutual agreement among the parties involved in the case, which came before Justice Umar for the first time.
The matter had previously been assigned to Justice Inyang Ekwo, who had already scheduled it for judgment.
However, the plaintiff later filed a motion to amend the originating process, prompting a delay.
Anyanwu originally filed the suit against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the acting PDP National Chairman, Umar Damagun, listed as first and second defendants.
In his ex-parte application, Anyanwu—through his lawyer, Ken Njemanze (SAN)—asked the court to issue an interim injunction to:
“…restrain INEC from accepting, acting on or giving effect to any correspondence from the PDP not signed by him pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.”
He also sought another interim order:
“…restraining Damagun from dispatching to INEC any correspondence purportedly emanating from PDP signed by the acting chair and not counter-signed by him.”
Justice Ekwo had initially fixed March 25 for judgment but was later presented with a request by Anyanwu to amend the originating process to address the questions for determination.
As a result, the hearing was rescheduled to May 19, although that date also faced objections from some of the parties.
Following requests for joinder, the court added more parties to the case. These include:
PDP (3rd defendant)
Udeh-Okoye (4th defendant)
Ali Odela, PDP National Vice Chairman (South-East) (5th defendant)
Setonji Koshoedo, PDP Deputy National Secretary (6th defendant)
Eventually, the case was reassigned to Justice Umar for continued proceedings.
At Thursday’s hearing, Anyanwu’s counsel, U. C. Njemanze-Aku, informed the court that the session was initially set for mention.
He also revealed that the plaintiff had received a letter from the 5th defendant requesting an adjournment until September.
Njemanze-Aku said “While we are not against the request for an adjournment, we would appreciate a shorter date from the court.”
Other lawyers present echoed this sentiment and aligned with the plaintiff’s position.
Paul Erokoro (SAN), representing Udeh Okoye, told the court:
“The issue currently before the court had been resolved by the apex court,” noting that, “the apex court held that the subject matter before the court was exclusive of political parties.”
He added that he intends to file an application to submit the relevant Supreme Court judgment.
In response, Justice Umar directed all parties to submit their responses to Anyanwu’s amendment motion. He concluded:
“The motion, as well as all objections, will be heard on September 22.”
