Wike’s Expulsion Sparks Revolts Among PDP Governors

Eshiorameh Sebastian and James Adamu

The Peoples Democratic Party was plunged into an unprecedented crisis on Saturday as its decision to expel the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and 10 other high-ranking leaders triggered an open revolt from within its own ranks, fracturing the party’s leadership and casting doubt on its future.

The expulsion, ratified at the party’s 20th National Convention at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan, was immediately denounced by two sitting PDP governors who distanced themselves from the action, while other expelled leaders and party officials dismissed the entire convention as an illegal “social party” held in defiance of court orders.

The decision to expel Wike and others, including a former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose; the party’s National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu; and the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade, was made over allegations of anti-party activities.

A motion for the expulsion was moved by the former National Vice Chairman of the party (South), Chief Olabode George, and seconded by the Bauchi PDP Chairman, Samaila Burga, before its eventual adoption by the delegates present. The convention also unanimously confirmed Umaru Damagum as the substantive National Chairman of the party.

However, the gathering, intended to showcase unity, instead revealed deep-seated divisions at the highest level of the party.

The rift became public when Governor Umaru Fintiri of Adamawa State, who chaired the National Organising Committee of the convention, dramatically dissociated himself from the expulsion of Wike. While delivering his speech at the convention ground, Fintiri cited the absence of officials from the Independent National Electoral Commission and the various litigations for and against the convention as reasons for his withdrawal from the exercise.

“With the absence of INEC and the various litigations for and against this convention, it is not within my prerogative to continue with this exercise. I leave the convention delegates to decide,” Fintiri stated.

He later clarified his position in a statement shared on his verified X handle, describing Wike’s expulsion as an action against the interest of the party and warning that it could plunge the PDP into an unending crisis.

“I urge all stakeholders to work towards healing the divisions within the party and to strive for unity and cohesion. As a party man, I am committed to supporting efforts that promote peace, stability, and progress within the PDP,” he wrote.

Governor Fintiri was not alone in his opposition. The Plateau State governor, Caleb Mutfwang, also distanced himself from the disputed expulsion, arguing that the issue was neither discussed at the PDP Governors’ Forum nor at the party’s National Executive Council before it was presented.

A statement signed by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Gyang Bere, maintained that the proposal did not represent the governor’s position. Mutfwang observed that expelling party leaders at such a critical time was not a strategic approach to addressing the internal challenges facing the PDP and reiterated the need for unity, dialogue, and collective effort in rebuilding and repositioning the party.

The convention itself was the culmination of a bitter pre-event confrontation, marred by legal hurdles. Former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, had approached the Federal High Court in Abuja after being denied the opportunity to purchase the PDP national chairmanship nomination form.

On Friday, just a day before the convention, Justice Peter Lifu ordered the party to suspend the convention and restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission from supervising, monitoring, or recognising any convention conducted by the PDP that did not include Lamido as a contestant.

This ruling followed a similar one delivered by Justice Lifu on Tuesday. However, in a conflicting order, the Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan had permitted the PDP to proceed with the convention. The Damagum camp proceeded with the programme, claiming no knowledge of Justice Lifu’s Friday order.

Announcing the expulsion of Wike and others via X on Saturday, the PDP said the decision was ratified by the majority of delegates at the convention. The party explained that the move underscored its commitment to eradicating internal divisions and anti-party conduct that have hindered its progress.

Citing sections of its 2017 Constitution, the PDP argued that the National Convention remains supreme in all matters relating to the party. Speaking after the announcement, the South-West PDP Chairman, Kamorudeen Ajisafe, said the expulsion was long overdue. “Wike and others were suspended for anti-party activities,” Ajisafe said. “They wanted to destroy the party, and we cannot allow that to happen.”

He, however, clarified that Lamido was not included in the expulsion despite his series of court moves to stop the convention. “Lamido isn’t in Wike’s category. He is a respected PDP leader,” Ajisafe stated. “He is just angry that he wasn’t allowed to purchase the nomination form to contest the PDP chairmanship, as he showed interest after the closure of the timeframe for such. We will resolve issues with him.”

The expelled leaders and their allies hit back fiercely, describing the convention as unlawful and a nullity. The Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, dismissed the convention as mere drama. Olayinka, via X, argued that no one should take the organisers seriously. “They went to Ibadan to start dirty December in November. When people decide to start their own dirty December in November, one can’t but ignore whatever comes out of their mouths,” he wrote. “They gathered in Ibadan to do social party, enjoyed themselves and got intoxicated. They are free to say anything.”

Abraham Amah, the Chairman of the PDP in Abia State who was among those expelled, described the convention as “an aberration” in view of ongoing litigation. “We have a matter in court and it has moved to the Appeal Court. So, it is against the spirit of the law and the constitution for them to go ahead to do what they had done. We are not part of what they have done,” he said.

Responding to questions on whether Abia delegates were present at the gathering, Amah stated that participation was limited. “It is a game of democracy. We have 17 local governments; four chairmen are there while 13 are not. We have 14 members of the state working committee; only five are there. Some people went there because of the money they want to collect,” he alleged.

George Turner, the Secretary of the PDP in the South-South Zone, also dismissed the gathering as a social event. “There is no PDP convention anywhere. You heard the chairman of the social gathering in Ibadan, Fintiri, where he announced that INEC was not there. So, it is not a convention of the PDP. When the PDP is ready with their convention, everybody will know. For now, it is good riddance to bad rubbish,” Turner said.

In the same vein, the acting Publicity Secretary of the South-South PDP, Enyinnaya Appolos, in a statement described the event as “ill-fated” and held “in clear defiance of due process and judicial pronouncements.” He said it was “troubling” that the organisers ignored two subsisting Federal High Court judgments and relied instead on “an ineffectual ex parte order which, in law and in fact, cannot override valid and extant court decisions.”

Appolos also faulted the absence of INEC, saying that alone rendered the exercise “procedurally defective and legally unsustainable.” He noted that the purported convention proceeded despite unresolved state congresses and explicit court orders barring such a gathering. “It is evident that every business purportedly transacted at this gathering cannot stand the test of time, nor withstand judicial scrutiny,” he said.

Further deepening the crisis, the Governors of Rivers, Osun, and Taraba states—Siminalayi Fubara, Ademola Adeleke, and Cephas Agbu—shunned the convention entirely. The Deputy National Youth Leader of the party, Timothy Osadolor, said it was a signal that they could exit the party. The National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Ajibola Basiru, already said Kefas would join the party on Wednesday, November 19.

Adeleke and Fubara are also said to be plotting escape from the PDP. Speaking in an interview, Osadolor said, “We should not blame Governor Adeleke and others who are not in Ibadan if they are on their way out of the party. Adeleke’s colleagues in Ibadan are hell-bent on frustrating his second-term bid, trying to destroy the party on whose platform they were all elected.

These people, especially the governors, should have saved themselves this monumental embarrassment that they are facing in Ibadan.” Osadolor dismissed the gathering in Ibadan as void, insisting that it carried no legal weight. “In the eyes of the law, it is a complete nullity.

There is no INEC presence at the venue of the so-called convention. So, when they finish this their Christmas party, will they write a list and send to INEC that the court told them not to monitor the process? How will they compel INEC to recognise the cheerleaders they will handpick in Ibadan? They should apologise to those they lured to Ibadan and save themselves from shame. The governors who shunned the event are wise.”

In another significant move, the convention dissolved all party structures in Enugu, Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Imo, and Abia states. The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, moved the motion for the convention to ratify and approve the elected executive committees of the party at various levels in states and zones where congresses had already been concluded.

The motion was seconded by the National Auditor and member of the PDP National Working Committee, Daniel Okechukwu. Makinde said, “In the case of Imo, Abia, Enugu, Akwa Ibom, and Rivers, the convention hereby dissolves all party structures at the ward, local government, and state levels.

The convention has authorised the publication of this decision to serve as official notice to the public.” He explained that the congresses were held across the country between 2024 and 2025 to elect party executives and maintained that they were conducted substantially in compliance with the Electoral Act and the party’s constitution.

The series of expulsions, dissolutions, and the open rebellion from its governors have left the main opposition party more fragmented than at any point in its recent history, facing an existential threat from within.