The Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled January 23, 2026, for hearing an application by the Kabiru Turaki-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seeking a stay of proceedings in a suit filed by a rival faction aligned with the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik adjourned the matter to allow the plaintiffs’ counsel, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, to respond to the Turaki-led group’s motion for a stay.
The Wike-aligned PDP, led by Acting National Chairman Alhaji Mohammed Abdulrahman and factional National Secretary Senator Samuel Anyanwu, filed the original suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2501/2025. They sought orders restraining the Turaki-led leadership (5th to 25th defendants) from acting as PDP representatives and from accessing the party’s national secretariat at Wadara Plaza, Abuja.
The plaintiffs also asked the court to prevent the police, the Department of State Services (DSS), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising any other office address submitted by the Turaki faction and urged enforcement of earlier High Court judgments by Justices James Omotosho and Peter Lifu.
The dispute intensified after Justice Abdulmalik granted an ex-parte motion restricting action pending the suit’s determination. The Turaki-led faction challenged the ruling at the Court of Appeal and filed a motion for the High Court to stay proceedings pending the appellate outcome.
Their lawyer, Chief Chris Uche, SAN, also sought Justice Abdulmalik’s recusal, citing a reasonable apprehension of bias and alleging that past rulings in similar PDP disputes reflected partiality. Uche requested that the case be reassigned to another judge.
Plaintiffs’ counsel Ikpeazu argued that the appeal does not automatically halt proceedings and that the court retains the authority to continue matters pending determination. He insisted that the High Court had acted within its powers and that the Turaki faction had not filed any motion to set aside previous orders.
Justice Abdulmalik directed the plaintiffs to file a formal response to the stay application, adjourning the case to January 23, 2026, for hearing.
The Turaki-led faction had cited twelve grounds in its recusal motion, emphasizing their constitutional right to an impartial tribunal under Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution, and referenced prior ex-parte rulings they claim unfairly favored the Wike-aligned faction.
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