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A caucus of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ignore a “purported notice” of congress allegedly issued by a rival faction.
The National Secretary, Mr. Oginni Sunday, who aligns with the faction loyal to the party’s Founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Boniface Aniebonam, made the appeal during a news conference in Abuja yesterday.
He said the convention notice, reportedly issued on behalf of the Rabiu Kwankwaso-led movement described by him as a pressure group within the NNPP, was a clear violation of the April 3 judgment of the FCT High Court.
Sunday noted that, based on the ruling in suit No. FCT/HC/CV/5518/2024, the two signatories to the letter, Dr. Ahmed Ajuji and Dipo Olayoku, were “meddlesome interlopers” in party affairs.
He stressed that the FCT High Court judgment had already addressed the matter of the proposed convention.
“Permit me to use this medium to make it known to Nigerians and the international community that Ajuji and his factional group instituted a case in the High Court of FCT on Dec. 16, 2024, to stop the lawful Congress and convention of NNPP initiated by Aniebonam led NNPP BoT.
“This judgment of stopping the lawful convention was delivered by the Abia State High Court on November 1, 2024, with Suit No. HUZ/11/2024.
“It is also a statement of fact that the FCT High Court in a judgment delivered by His Lordship, Justice M.A.Hassan on April 3 dismissed the case instituted by the Ajuji-led faction group of Kwankwaso against Aniebonam-led NNPP.
“Consequently, the Ajuji-led group by the effect of the FCT Court judgment of the April 3 are the judgment’s debtors while Chief Aniebonam led NNPP becomes the judgment’s creditors,” Sunday said.
He described as shocking the decision of Ajuji and Olayoku to approach INEC for a fresh convention despite the unchallenged judgment, insisting their action amounted to outright disregard for the valid congress and convention held under the Aniebonam-led leadership in December 2024 and January 2025.
According to him, the party has already written to INEC urging the commission to distance itself from the planned congress, expressing hope that the electoral umpire would act promptly.
It will be recalled that on April 3, Justice Hassan dismissed a suit filed by a faction loyal to Kwankwaso, which sought to question the legitimacy of the Aniebonam-led leadership and the National Chairman, Dr. Agbo Major.
The suit, filed by Ajuji and 20 others, also challenged the authority of the NNPP Board of Trustees and key executives, including factional National Secretary Oginni Olaposi, Deputy National Chairman Chief Felix Chukwurah, and lawyer Tony Obioha.
The plaintiffs had urged the court to restrain the officials from holding meetings, organising congresses, or presiding over the party’s national convention, alleging that they had been expelled.
But Justice Hassan held that leadership and membership disputes in political parties were internal matters beyond the court’s jurisdiction, and therefore struck out the suit.