Peoples Democratic Party Crisis deepens as Wike’s faction rejects the planned Ibadan convention, defying BoT and party leadership directives.
Peoples Democratic Party Crisis has taken a new turn as the faction loyal to the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, insists that the party’s national convention scheduled for Ibadan later this month will not hold.
Also read: Nyesom Wike Dismisses Oyo Court Ruling on PDP Convention
Despite the Board of Trustees’ (BoT) directive urging the National Working Committee (NWC) to proceed with the convention, the group led by factional Acting National Chairman Abdulrahman Mohammed declared the event suspended, citing a subsisting court order.
The party’s national secretariat in Abuja remains sealed, with both factions operating from separate offices amid tight police presence. The BoT, aware of the tense situation, met at the Bauchi State Governor’s Lodge, Abuja, on Wednesday, in a session attended by Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum, BoT Chairman Adolphus Wabara, and former Kaduna State Governor Ahmed Makarfi, among others.
However, Abdulrahman’s faction held a parallel meeting at the Wuye office of embattled National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu, where he informed journalists that a Federal High Court ruling had put the convention on hold.
“Having filed an appeal, we hereby suspend and cancel the proposed Ibadan national convention pending the decision of the Court of Appeal,” Abdulrahman said, insisting that the faction’s actions were grounded in legality and due process.
He further criticised an ex parte order issued by the Oyo State High Court that directed the convention to proceed, arguing that it could not override a Federal High Court judgement. “We shall continue to act only in accordance with valid judicial authority and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Oyo State chapter of the PDP, loyal to Governor Seyi Makinde, dismissed the Wike-aligned faction’s claims as political theatrics. State Publicity Secretary Micheal Ogunsina accused the dissenting members of seeking relevance. “We must stop listening to charlatans and political comedians,” he said. “PDP is one, and the National Chairman remains Umar Damagum.”
Ogunsina reaffirmed that the Ibadan convention would go ahead as planned, asserting that the NWC, BoT, and other organs were united.
He expressed confidence that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would comply with the Oyo High Court order allowing the event to proceed.
The Peoples Democratic Party Crisis has also kept the Wadata Plaza headquarters under lock, with Anyanwu explaining that the move was to protect staff after alleged threats of violence. “When I arrived at the office to do my normal job, I was almost attacked by hoodlums,” he claimed, blaming loyalists of the Damagum camp for the unrest.
Anyanwu, like Abdulrahman, maintained that the Abuja court’s ruling superseded the Oyo ex parte order and that holding the convention now would violate judicial hierarchy. “The Federal High Court in Abuja has more powers.
The ex parte order lasts only seven days, and our appeal is already before the Court of Appeal,” he said.
Also read: PDP crisis deepens as Ortom, Fayose back Wike
The escalating Peoples Democratic Party Crisis underscores the deep divisions threatening Nigeria’s main opposition party ahead of what should have been a unifying convention. For now, both camps appear entrenched — with the courts set to determine the next chapter of this political standoff.
