The internal conflict within the Peoples Democratic Party has escalated dramatically, with rivalry factions aligned with Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike arranging simultaneous National Executive Committee meetings at the party’s Abuja headquarters today.
This crisis followed Saturday’s national convention in Ibadan that created a new National Working Committee while removing several key stakeholders of the party, including Wike.
Despite these expulsions, associates of the FCT minister have scheduled their own emergency NEC and Board of Trustees meeting at Wadata Plaza.
Senator Samuel Anyanwu, who signed the meeting notice, described the session as essential for discussing important party matters.
In preparation for today’s events, the newly inaugurated fictional National Chairman, Tanimu Turaki, visited police headquarters on Monday to report concerns about potential disruptions by Anyanwu’s group.
Speaking with journalists after the meeting, Turaki explained, “We came to interface with the Commissioner of Police of the FCT regarding the meeting we plan to have tomorrow. It will be the inaugural meeting of our National Working Committee.”
He maintained that those removed at the Ibadan convention no longer held legitimate standing within the PDP.
“Next to God, the national convention is the highest authority of a political party. Those expelled are no longer members of our party. We’ve reported their moves because we do not want any breach of peace,” he said.
The chairman cautioned that anyone attempting to use the party headquarters without the new leadership’s authorization would be considered trespassers.
He committed to personally leading the NWC into the building today, stating, “We are prepared to defend our party and our democracy.” Later that day, Turaki’s NWC circulated its own summons for a meeting at the same location.
Former National Organising Secretary Umar Bature, whose expulsion was announced at the convention, confirmed he would participate in the meeting called by Anyanwu, which aims to review the party’s condition.
He dismissed the validity of his removal from the party. However, senior party figure Chief Bode George declared the NEC and BoT meetings organized by Anyanwu unlawful. “He (Anyanwu) has been expelled. He is trying to create a parallel organ. He should wake up and go to his village,” he said.
An anonymous source from the Makinde camp challenged the legitimacy of Turaki’s leadership, noting that only sixteen states participated in the convention that elected him. The source argued that proper election of national officers requires broader representation and accused various PDP leaders, including Wike, Makinde and George, of working against the party during the 2023 elections.
Adding to the crisis, former Kaduna State Governor Senator Ahmed Makarfi resigned from his position as Secretary of the PDP Board of Trustees. In his resignation letter, Makarfi explained that since the new National Chairman comes from the same North-West zone, he should step aside to provide the chairman sufficient operational space.
He noted that he had tried to resign months earlier but was convinced to wait until after the national convention. “With a Chairman now emerging from the North-West where I come from, it is necessary to give him full space to do the needful,” he wrote.
With both factions preparing for today’s confrontation at Wadata Plaza, political observers are closely watching how one of Nigeria’s major parties will manage this severe internal crisis as the 2027 general elections approach.
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