Anyanwu PDP National Secretary dispute sees fresh suit dismissed as Abuja court rules no costs after withdrawal of the case

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday dismissed a fresh suit filed by a factional National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, after he applied to withdraw the matter.

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At the resumed hearing, counsel to Anyanwu, U C Njemanze Aku, informed the court that the suit had been overtaken by events and no longer required judicial determination.

He told the court that continuing with the case would amount to a waste of judicial time, urging the court to allow its withdrawal in the interest of justice.

The legal battle over the office of PDP National Secretary began after Anyanwu vacated the position to contest the 2023 Imo State governorship election, which he lost.

His attempt to reclaim the office later triggered internal disputes within the party, with Sunday Udeh Okoye emerging as a rival claimant to the position.

On December 20, 2024, the Court of Appeal in Enugu upheld an earlier decision of the Federal High Court, which removed Anyanwu from office and affirmed Udeh Okoye as the authentic PDP National Secretary.

Anyanwu subsequently appealed to the Supreme Court and sought a stay of execution. In March 2025, the apex court overturned the judgments of the lower courts that had sacked him.

Despite the Supreme Court ruling, the leadership tussle persisted, with opposing factions asserting authority at the party’s national secretariat.

In a bid to enforce his position, Anyanwu filed a fresh suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The court later granted his application to amend the originating summons in November 2025 and awarded costs against him, before adjourning the case to January 20, 2026.

However, when the matter came up for hearing on Tuesday, Anyanwu PDP National Secretary dispute took another turn as his legal team opted to withdraw the suit.

Counsel to the second defendant, Akintayo Balogun, argued that the suit should never have been filed and urged the court to dismiss it with costs of N1m.

Other defence lawyers aligned with the submission and separately requested costs ranging from N1m to N1.5m.

In response, Anyanwu’s counsel maintained that the withdrawal was not voluntary but was compelled by circumstances beyond the plaintiff’s control, urging the court to allow parties to bear their own costs.

In his ruling, the presiding judge dismissed the suit and declined all requests for costs, holding that the delay and circumstances were not attributable to any of the parties.

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He ruled that no cost would be awarded, bringing the prolonged Anyanwu PDP National Secretary legal dispute before the court to an end.