The crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) intensified on Wednesday as Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike clashed over the scheduled date for the party’s 100th National Executive Committee meeting and the reinstatement of Senator Samuel Anyanwu as National Secretary.
Makinde’s camp, which includes Governors Peter Mbah (Enugu), Douye Diri (Bayelsa), Ademola Adeleke (Osun), Dauda Lawal (Zamfara), 11 NWC members, and several party chieftains, insists the NEC meeting must hold on June 30 as planned.
They are also opposed to Anyanwu’s return as National Secretary.
In contrast, Wike’s allies — Governors Caleb Muftwang (Plateau), Kefas Agbu (Taraba), Adamu Fintiri (Adamawa), Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, acting National Chairman Umar Damagum, National Organising Secretary Umar Bature, and National Legal Adviser Kamaldeen Ajibade (SAN) — are pushing for Anyanwu’s reinstatement and a postponement of the NEC meeting.
This deepening division comes just 24 hours after Damagum led top party officials to a high-level fact-finding session with the Independent National Electoral Commission in Abuja.
During a press conference on Wednesday at the party’s secretariat in Abuja, Damagum announced the reinstatement of Senator Anyanwu as National Secretary and the postponement of the party’s 100th NEC.
He described the decision to cancel the NEC meeting as difficult but one that had the backing of the majority of party members.
Responding, 11 out of 19 members of the National Working Committee rejected the reinstatement of Anyanwu as the party’s national secretary and insisted on the June 30th NEC.
PDP has been beset by persistent internal crises since losing power in 2015. These challenges include leadership disputes, wave of defections, and unresolved congress issues in key regions.
To manage the instability, the PDP appointed Setonji Koshoedo as acting National Secretary. However, a fact-finding committee led by Taraba State Governor Kefas Agbu revealed that the INEC still officially recognised Anyanwu as the legitimate National Secretary.
Based on this, the party’s 99th NEC had scheduled the 100th NEC meeting for June 30 and Damagum notified INEC via a letter dated May 30.
However, INEC rejected the letter, citing the PDP’s internal rules, which require that such correspondence be jointly signed by both the National Chairman and the National Secretary, and urged compliance with proper procedures.
Reacting to the controversy, PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, stated during a media briefing on Sunday that INEC’s role was limited to acknowledging notifications of party activities like congresses and conventions, not approving or controlling internal affairs.
However, in a statement issued on Monday, Damagum dissociated the party from Ologunagba’s remarks, describing them as personal opinions made without broad consultation.
