PDP Crisis Deepens as Anyanwu Takes Expulsion Fight to Appeal Court

Senator Samuel Anyanwu has taken his fight against expulsion from the PDP to the Court of Appeal, filing a nine-ground appeal that could unravel the entire foundation of the Wike-backed faction currently running Nigeria’s main opposition party.

Anyanwu, who served as PDP National Secretary before his suspension and recommended expulsion, filed the notice on April 10 through his lawyer K. C. O. Njemanze, SAN. He is challenging the January 12 judgment of Justice Yusuf Halilu of the FCT High Court, which dismissed his suit and upheld the Tom Ikimi-led National Disciplinary Committee’s recommendation to expel him for alleged anti-party activities.

Why this appeal could break the PDP

The implications go well beyond Anyanwu’s personal fate. As PDP scribe, he signed the letter to INEC on November 3, 2025, appointing Abdulrahman Mohammed as Acting National Chairman. He was also part of the National Caretaker Working Committee that organised the March 28-29 National Convention, which produced the current national officers loyal to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike.

Here is the problem: Anyanwu signed that letter while already under suspension. If the Appeal Court upholds his expulsion, every action he took after suspension becomes questionable. The convention, the composition of the National Working Committee, and the party’s ability to nominate candidates for future elections could all be voided.

Members of the Wike faction are reportedly growing nervous. The entire basis of their legitimacy within the party rests on a process overseen by a man who was technically not supposed to be acting in that capacity.

Anyanwu’s case

In his appeal, Anyanwu argues that the lower court got it wrong when it held that his failure to exhaust internal PDP remedies made the suit premature. He insists his complaints go beyond party internal affairs and touch on his constitutional right to fair hearing.

“The complaints of the appellant touch and concern his constitutional rights, particularly right to fair hearing, and the violation of the Constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party,” the appeal document reads. He also argues that the Nigerian Constitution remains supreme over party rules, giving courts the jurisdiction to intervene in what the PDP considers an internal matter.

Anyanwu further contested the lower court’s finding that his claims did not fall within any recognised exception to the doctrine of non-justiciability of intra-party disputes.

April 22 could change everything

As if the Anyanwu appeal was not enough, a separate Supreme Court hearing on April 22 could determine the party’s ultimate direction. The Court of Appeal had already nullified the convention that produced Tanimu Turaki as chairman in its March 9 judgment, adding yet another layer of legal chaos.

With 2027 approaching, the PDP is fighting itself in court more than it is contesting the ruling APC. The next two weeks will show whether the party can hold together or splinter beyond repair.

Sources: Arise News, Punch, The Sun