Court Reserves Judgment on Pantami’s PDP Governorship Ticket

A Federal High Court sitting in Gombe has reserved judgment in a suit challenging the emergence of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa-Ali Ibrahim Pantami, as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the 2027 election in Gombe State.

The case was filed by PDP governorship aspirant, Aliyu Garry, who is asking the court to determine whether the process that produced Pantami as the party’s flag bearer complied with the law and the party’s internal regulations.

Justice Amina-Aliyu Muhammad reserved judgment on Friday after lawyers representing all parties adopted their final written addresses and concluded arguments in the pre-election matter.

During the proceedings, Garry’s counsel, Eko-Ejembi Eko, urged the court to grant all the reliefs sought by his client. He argued that the case was properly brought before the court and deserved judicial intervention.

On the other hand, Pantami’s legal team, led by Mohammed Abdul, SAN, who was represented in court by Benjamin Sati, asked the court to dismiss the suit. The defence maintained that Pantami’s emergence followed due process and was in line with both legal requirements and the PDP’s guidelines.

After hearing the submissions of the parties, Justice Muhammad commended the conduct of the lawyers involved in the matter.

“I must commend the learned counsels on both sides for their professionalism, honesty, competence and the respect they have shown to this court throughout the hearing of this matter,” the judge said.

She thereafter reserved judgment and stated that parties would be informed of the date fixed for the delivery of the verdict.

“The court hereby reserves judgment in this matter. A date for the delivery of the judgement will be communicated to all parties in due course,” Justice Muhammad ruled.

The suit is one of the legal challenges currently trailing Pantami’s emergence as the PDP governorship candidate ahead of the 2027 election in Gombe State.

The latest development came less than a day after the same court reserved judgment in another suit filed by a separate PDP governorship aspirant, Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki, who is also contesting Pantami’s nomination.

Mailantarki is seeking the nullification of the PDP governorship primary conducted on May 26, 2026. He is asking the court to order the party to organise a fresh primary election.

Speaking after the hearing of that case, Mailantarki’s lead counsel, Mustapha-Shaba Ibrahim, SAN, said the suit was filed over concerns regarding the process that led to Pantami’s emergence.

According to him, “a stranger was brought into the process and coronated the candidate of the PDP for the Gombe governorship election.”

He explained that both the substantive suit and preliminary objections raised by the defendants had been argued before the court and were awaiting judgment.

The senior lawyer also clarified that the withdrawal of Monica Kaltho, who was initially listed as a co-plaintiff in the matter, would not affect the case.

He noted that the law permits one plaintiff to continue an action where another decides to withdraw, adding that Mailantarki remains the principal challenger in the suit.

Ibrahim further stated that his client is seeking a fresh governorship primary involving the major aspirants who participated in the contest.

According to him, the plaintiffs contend that Pantami was not a member of the PDP at the time the primary election was conducted and therefore should not have been part of the exercise.

Meanwhile, counsel to the PDP, Kamaldeen Ajibade, SAN, confirmed that the court had concluded hearing the Mailantarki suit and reserved judgment after parties adopted their final processes.

The two separate cases are expected to play a significant role in determining the future of the PDP governorship ticket in Gombe State as political activities ahead of the 2027 general elections continue to gather momentum.