CANADIAN COURT RULES APC AND PDP TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS, UPHOLDS DEPORTATION OF NIGERIAN MAN

A Canadian Federal Court has dismissed an asylum claim by a Nigerian man, Douglas Egharevba, after ruling that the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are terrorist organizations. The court’s decision, delivered on June 17, 2025, upheld a previous ruling by the Immigration Appeal Division, which found Egharevba inadmissible to Canada due to his membership in the two parties.

Justice Phuong Ngo said the PDP’s history of violence and intimidation during elections, including ballot stuffing and killing opposition supporters, met Canada’s legal definition of subversion of a democratic process. The judge also ruled that mere membership in the parties was enough to trigger inadmissibility, regardless of personal involvement in violent activities.

Egharevba, who joined the PDP in 1999 and later defected to the APC in 2007, had claimed that he was not personally involved in any violent activities. However, the court found that the parties’ widespread and persistent violence over a long period made it impossible to dissociate their leadership from the actions of their members.

The ruling has significant implications for Nigerians seeking asylum in Canada, and highlights the Canadian government’s broad interpretation of terrorism and subversion. Egharevba’s asylum claim has been effectively rejected, and he faces deportation. “An admission of membership in an organization is sufficient… regardless of the nature, frequency, duration or degree of involvement,” Justice Ngo stated.