Olawepo-Hashim urges PDP unity after courtroom ruling

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, on Monday known as on celebration leaders to shut ranks and resolve the lingering inner dispute following a judgment by the Court docket of Appeal of Nigeria on the celebration’s controversial nationwide conference.

Olawepo-Hashim described the disaster rocking the opposition celebration as a “household quarrel,” urging stakeholders to embrace reconciliation and unity within the curiosity of the celebration and the nation.

His response adopted the appellate courtroom’s resolution dismissing an attraction filed by a faction of the celebration led by former Minister of Particular Duties, Kabiru Turaki, SAN.

The attraction was one in every of 9 harmonised appeals difficult the October 31, 2025 judgment of the Federal Excessive Court docket of Nigeria in Abuja, which restrained the Unbiased Nationwide Electoral Fee from validating the end result of the PDP’s nationwide conference held in Ibadan in November 2025.

In a unanimous judgment delivered by a three-member panel led by Uchechukwu Onyemenam, the Court docket of Appeal held that the Federal Excessive Court docket had jurisdiction to listen to the go well with.

The appellate courtroom rejected the appellants’ argument that the matter was purely an inner affair of the celebration and due to this fact exterior the jurisdiction of the courtroom.

Justice Onyemenam held that the appellants couldn’t disguise what the courtroom described as a violation of each the celebration’s structure and the Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a mere inner dispute.

The courtroom additional dominated that the PDP did not adjust to related constitutional and statutory provisions required earlier than conducting a legitimate nationwide conference.

Amongst its findings, the courtroom famous that no legitimate discover of the conference was served on the Unbiased Nationwide Electoral Fee as required by regulation.

It additionally held that legitimate congresses weren’t performed in additional than 14 states of the federation earlier than the conference was convened.

Reacting to the judgment, Olawepo-Hashim, in a press release made obtainable to The PidomNigeria On-line, mentioned the time had come for all contending factions inside the PDP to place the dispute behind them and deal with rebuilding the celebration.

“This can be a household quarrel that should now finish on the Appeal Court docket. Leaders on each side have agreed in precept to unite and harmonise positions in all of the talks and negotiations we have now heard,” he mentioned.

He expressed optimism that the reconciliation efforts at present underway amongst celebration leaders would in the end restore unity inside the PDP.

“We belief that this unity could be achieved by the grace of God. Nigerians earnestly count on this and posterity calls for it,” Olawepo-Hashim added.

The PDP has in latest months been embroiled in inner disagreements and authorized battles amongst rival factions, a improvement that has raised issues amongst celebration stakeholders concerning the celebration’s cohesion.