Court restricts PDP from removing Umar Damagum as acting chairman

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is not allowed to remove Umar Damagum from his position as acting chairman, according to an Abuja federal high court ruling. 

The lawsuit was filed on May 2 by Zanna Mustapha Gaddama and Umar El-Gash Maina and is designated FCH/ABJ/CS/579/2024. 

The PDP, the National Working Committee (NWC), the National Executive Committee (NEC), the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are the parties named as respondents in the lawsuit.

In his ruling on the move ex parte on May 3, presiding judge Peter Lifu issued an interim injunction prohibiting the respondents from proposing a replacement for Damagum while the motion on notice was being decided.

nominating any person to replace Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum as national chairman or acting national chairman of the 1st defendant/respondent pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice already filed, which is herein fixed against the 14th of May, 2024,” the judge ruled.

“The defendants/respondents, by themselves, agents, privies, or by any proxy, are hereby in the interim restrained from, according to recognition, any person other than Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum as acting national chairman of the 1st defendants/respondents or giving effect to or acting upon any document purporting to be signed by the national chairman or acting national chairman of the 1st defendant without the name and signature of Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice already filed in court in the instant suit.

In order to hear the application on notice, the court postponed the matter to May 14.

Source