March 21, (THEWILL) – The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the dispute over the position of National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is strictly an internal matter of the party, beyond the jurisdiction of any court to adjudicate.
The apex court, in a unanimous decision by a five-member panel, set aside the rulings of both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal in Enugu, which had affirmed Sunday Udeh-Okoye as the PDP’s National Secretary.
THEWILL recalls that the legal tussle between Samuel Anyanwu and Udeh-Okoye over the position intensified after the Court of Appeal’s judgment on December 20, 2024, which upheld an earlier High Court decision sacking Anyanwu. Following this, the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) recognized Udeh-Okoye as the party’s substantive National Secretary on February 12.
Dissatisfied with the rulings of the lower courts, Anyanwu approached the Supreme Court, seeking to have the judgments overturned and to be declared the party’s authentic National Secretary.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Jamilu Tukur held that the judiciary has no jurisdiction over the internal affairs of a political party, emphasizing that political organizations have the autonomy to manage their internal affairs, provided such actions are in line with their constitutions and the laws of the land.
Reaffirming the principle of party supremacy, the Supreme Court directed the PDP to resolve the leadership dispute through its internal mechanisms, by its constitution.
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