The Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja on Tuesday, accepted an application filed by the embattled National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Samuel Anyanwu, seeking to amend the original summons he filed in a suit seeking to validate his position as National Secretary of the Party.
When the matter was called, UC Njemanze-Aku, representing Anyanwu, informed the court that the matter was adjourned until Tuesday to rule on the plaintiff’s application to amend the original summons filed in the matter.
In a brief ruling, the trial judge, Justice Mohammed Umar, allowed the amendment of the plaintiff’s application and awarded a cost of N30,000 to be paid by the plaintiff to each of the defendants and adjourned the matter to January 20, 2026 for hearing.
Apart from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the PDP National Chairman, Umar Damagun, other defendants in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/254/2025, are the party itself, Honorable Udeh-Okoye Ememchukwu, the PDP South East National Vice Chairman, Ali Odela, as well as the party’s Deputy National Secretary, Setonji Koshoedo.
Senator Anyanwu had approached the court to stay the execution of concurrent sentences removing him from office and recognizing Udeh-Okoye as the national secretary of the party.
The Enugu Court of Appeal, in a judgment delivered last December, upheld a High Court verdict that removed Senator Anyanwu and recognized Udeh-Okoye as the party’s national scribe.
The court held that Anyanwu’s continued tenure as national secretary violated the PDP Constitution as he had contested and emerged as the party’s candidate in the gubernatorial election held in Imo State last year.
Both the Board of Trustees (BOT) and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP, acting on the basis of the judgments, endorsed Chief Udeh-Okoye.
However, dissatisfied with the verdicts, Anyanwu filed an appeal with the Supreme Court, while also approaching the high court with an application seeking to stay the execution of the sentences against him.
While deciding the matter on May 21, the high court, in a unanimous decision by a five-judge panel, set aside the rulings of the two lower courts for lack of jurisdiction.
The Supreme Court held that the dispute resolved by the courts bordered on internal matters of a political party in which, it said, no court has legal powers to interfere.
The high court ruling sparked various reactions with both the Anyanwu and Udeh-Okoye camps claiming victory.
Meanwhile, in an affidavit he filed in response to Senator Anyanwu’s case, Honorable Udeh-Okoye, who is the fourth defendant, told the court that although the plaintiff was elected at a National Convention the party held on October 30, 2021, for a four-year term, he lost the position after being nominated as the party’s candidate for the governorship election held in Imo State in 2023.