By Bimbo Aderenle
The leadership crisis rocking the Social Democratic Party took a dramatic turn as the Supreme Court nullified the Court of Appeal judgment that had been used by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to recognise Shehu Gabam as the National Chairman of the party.
In a unanimous judgment delivered in suit SC/CV/229/2026 on May 22, 2026, the apex court set aside the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, effectively dismantling the legal foundation upon which INEC based its recognition of the Gabam-led leadership within the party.
The ruling marks the latest twist in the prolonged internal battle over the control of the SDP and disputes surrounding the conduct of party primaries, especially the Ekiti State governorship primary election.
The controversy originated from appeal CA/ABJ/CV/126/2026, filed by SDP member Fayemi Babatunde, who challenged the legality of the Ekiti governorship primary election conducted by the party leadership.
Babatunde argued that the National Working Committee led by Sadiq Gombe was unlawfully constituted in violation of the SDP constitution and provisions of the Electoral Act, insisting that the leadership lacked the authority to appoint an electoral committee or conduct valid primaries.
He also asked the court to restrain INEC from recognising candidates that emerged from the disputed process.
Earlier, on January 19, 2026, the Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice Emeka Nwite, dismissed the suit and upheld the legality of the Gombe-led leadership as well as the party’s processes.
However, the Court of Appeal, in a judgment delivered on March 27, 2026, partly overturned the lower court’s decision.
The three-member appellate panel led by Justice Eberechi Nyesom-Wike, with Justices Abba Mohammed and Oyejoju Oyewumi concurring, ruled that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to make definitive pronouncements on the SDP leadership tussle.
“The appeal succeeds in part,” the appellate court had declared, while maintaining that Babatunde was not an aspirant in the disputed primary election.
The Appeal Court subsequently nullified portions of the Federal High Court judgment that recognised Gombe as the authentic SDP chairman and also voided the validation of the November 8, 2025 Ekiti governorship primary.
Despite that decision, the appellate court relied on INEC’s monitoring report, marked as Exhibit INEC 3, which confirmed that the primary election was conducted with valid delegates and produced Bankole Oludele as winner.
Following the appellate ruling, INEC updated its official records in April, listing Gabam as SDP National Chairman and Olu Agunloye as National Secretary.
Other members of the National Working Committee displayed by the commission included Maggie Mariam as National Treasurer and Aderemi Abimbola as National Legal Adviser, with several positions marked “By Court Order.”
But with Friday’s Supreme Court judgment setting aside the appellate decision entirely, the legal basis for INEC’s recognition of the Gabam-led leadership has now been erased, throwing the party’s leadership structure back into uncertainty and strengthening the position of the Abubakar Gombe-led faction.
