By Paul Joseph
A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says it has formally submitted the name of former President Goodluck Jonathan as its presidential candidate for the 2027 general election, despite the party’s lingering leadership crisis.
The faction’s Interim National Working Committee (INWC), led by Kabiru Turaki (SAN), announced that it manually submitted Jonathan’s nomination, alongside lists of governorship, National Assembly and state assembly candidates, to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in line with the Electoral Act 2026.
Speaking at a press briefing, the INWC’s National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, alleged that although INEC acknowledged receiving the documents, the commission denied the faction access to the electronic submission portal.
Ememobong maintained that the group remains the legitimate leadership of the PDP, arguing that Supreme Court rulings left the party without a recognised national executive, prompting the Board of Trustees and a member-convened National Executive Committee to establish an interim leadership.
He disclosed that the faction had approached the Federal High Court in Abuja after INEC allegedly refused to recognise the interim leadership despite receiving formal notifications of its establishment.
The spokesman also criticised a recent judgment delivered by Justice Salim Oluwasupo Ibrahim, claiming it conflicted with previous Supreme Court and Court of Appeal decisions. According to him, the faction has appealed the ruling and is confident the appellate court will overturn it.
The group further alleged discrepancies in the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment, claiming parts of the document differed from the ruling delivered in open court.
Ememobong accused INEC of displaying institutional bias against the PDP by allegedly disregarding court orders and facts favourable to the party. He warned that if the commission publishes a different list of candidates, it would deepen concerns over its neutrality.
Despite the dispute, the faction urged its members to remain calm, insisting it would continue to pursue legal remedies while defending what it described as the authentic PDP structure.
Reaffirming the group’s position, Ememobong said the manual submission of candidates complied fully with the Electoral Act 2026 and warned against what he described as attempts to weaken opposition politics and promote a one-party state.
He expressed confidence that the courts would ultimately resolve the leadership dispute in the faction’s favour, pledging to pursue the legal process to its conclusion.
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