Court of Appeal Affirms Prof. Gombe as National Chairman of the SDP

Appellate Court Shuts Down Six Applications

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has again affirmed Professor Abubakar Sadiq Gombe as National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party, dismissing all six applications filed by parties contesting his leadership. A three-member panel comprising Justices Fadawu Umaru, M.S. Hassan and L.A. Ganiyu delivered a unanimous judgment on 12 August, declaring the Federal High Court's earlier decision in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/402/2026 null and void. In his lead judgment, Justice Umaru held that the Federal High Court had erred in law by disregarding a Supreme Court decision that had already settled the SDP leadership question in Gombe's favour.

That earlier Supreme Court ruling, delivered on 22 May in Suit No. SC/CV/229/2026, had itself set aside a Court of Appeal judgment which INEC previously relied on to recognise Shehu Gabam, an expelled former SDP chairman, as the party's legitimate leader. Gabam had been suspended, investigated for alleged financial misconduct and eventually expelled with ratification from the party's National Executive Committee in March, and is reportedly facing separate criminal proceedings over alleged misappropriation of party funds. Despite that history, Gabam continued pursuing recognition through the courts, prompting this latest round of litigation.

Setting Aside a Conflicting Judgment

According to SDP presidential candidate and lead counsel Prince Adewole Adebayo, the appellate court's ruling rested on two grounds: that the Federal High Court judgment directly contradicted the binding Supreme Court decision, and that the lower court had wrongly recognised an expelled member as having standing to challenge the leadership. The ruling sets aside the Federal High Court judgment Gabam had relied on to compel INEC to recognise him as SDP National Chairman instead of Gombe.

Speaking after the judgment, Gombe thanked the judiciary for what he described as an expeditious resolution and called on INEC to respect the internal leadership and candidate-selection decisions of all twenty-two registered political parties, not the SDP alone. INEC has already begun acting on the ruling, including its swift move to include the SDP on the Osun governorship ballot.

Why It Matters

For law students studying political party law, the case illustrates how the doctrine of judicial precedent operates in practice, with a lower court's failure to follow a binding Supreme Court decision proving fatal on appeal. For practicing lawyers handling internal party disputes, the ruling is a useful reminder that questions already settled by the Supreme Court cannot be reopened through parallel Federal High Court litigation, and that courts will readily set aside judgments that attempt to do so.