The Federal High Court sitting in Gombe has nullified the emergence of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the 2027 election in Gombe State.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, Justice Amina Aliyu Mohammed ordered the PDP to conduct a fresh governorship primary in line with the party’s constitution, guidelines, and relevant electoral laws.
The ruling followed a suit filed by PDP governorship aspirant, Usman Aliyu Garry, who challenged the process that produced Pantami as the party’s candidate.
Garry had asked the court to invalidate Pantami’s emergence, arguing that the PDP failed to conduct a valid governorship primary in accordance with its internal rules and Nigeria’s electoral laws.
After considering arguments from all parties, the court ruled in favour of the plaintiff and directed the PDP to organize another governorship primary to produce its candidate for the 2027 governorship election in Gombe State.
The judgment comes months after the court reserved its decision in July following the adoption of final written addresses by lawyers representing the parties involved in the case.
Pantami, who served as Minister of Communications and Digital Economy under former President Muhammadu Buhari, defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the PDP after the ruling party settled on Jamilu Gwamna as its governorship candidate.
He subsequently emerged as the PDP governorship candidate during the party’s primary election held on May 26.
During the proceedings, Pantami’s legal team argued that he had officially resigned from the APC on May 19, 2026, before taking part in the PDP primary election. The PDP also urged the court to dismiss the suit.
However, counsel to Garry insisted that the process that led to Pantami’s emergence was flawed and asked the court to grant all the reliefs sought by his client.
With the latest court ruling, the PDP will now be required to conduct a fresh governorship primary to determine its candidate for the 2027 Gombe State governorship election.
