Leadership Tussle: SDP Seeks Appeal Court Intervention

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) has approached the Court of Appeal in Abuja seeking to stay the execution of a Federal High Court judgment relating to the party’s leadership and the nomination of its candidate for the 2026 Osun State governorship election.

In a Motion on Notice filed before the appellate court, the party is asking for an order staying the execution of the June 24, 2026 judgment delivered by Justice M.G. Umar of the Federal High Court, pending the determination of its appeal. This was disclosed in a statement signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Araba Rufus Aiyenigba, in Abuja.
The SDP also requested an order restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from taking any step to enforce the judgment until the appeal is heard and determined. It argued that the Federal High Court judgment contradicted an earlier Supreme Court ruling delivered on May 22, 2026, which reportedly set aside an Appeal Court judgment recognising Alhaji Shehu Gabam as National Chairman and reinstated Prof. Sadiq Umar Abubakar Gombe as the party’s National Chairman. According to the party, it would amount to a legal anomaly for a lower court to issue orders that conflict with a subsisting Supreme Court judgment.
Court documents showed that the appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CV/1011/2026, arose from Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/402/2026 involving the recognition of Salawu-Adeniyi Mustapha Olaitan as the SDP governorship candidate for the 2026 Osun election. The party maintained that its appeal raises substantial and arguable issues and warned that implementing the Federal High Court judgment could render the appeal nugatory if irreversible actions are taken before its determination. It urged the Court of Appeal to preserve the status quo in the interest of justice and prevent the substantive appeal from becoming merely academic. The appellate court is yet to fix a date for the hearing of the application.