Canadian court declares APC and PDP terrorist organisations

Nigeria’s two major political parties, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), have rejected a Canadian Federal Court ruling classifying both organisations as terrorist groups.

The June 17, 2025 judgment by Justice Phuong Ngo upheld a decision by Canada’s Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) to deny asylum to Nigerian national Douglas Egharevba, citing his decade-long membership in both parties.

According to court records, Egharevba was a PDP member from 1999 to 2007 before joining the APC, where he remained until 2017, when he moved to Canada and disclosed his political affiliations.

Canadian court filings show the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness argued that both parties were involved in political violence, democratic subversion, and electoral bloodshed. The PDP’s alleged role in the 2003 state elections and 2004 local government polls was cited, including accusations of ballot stuffing, voter intimidation, and the killing of opposition supporters.

The IAD found that party leadership benefited from the violence and took no action to prevent it, meeting Canada’s legal threshold for democratic subversion under paragraph 34(1)(b.1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA).

Justice Ngo ruled that under paragraph 34(1)(f) of the IRPA, “mere membership of an organisation linked to terrorism or democratic subversion” is enough to render a person inadmissible to Canada, even without proof of direct involvement.

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