•Chairman, PDP Governors Forum and Governor of Bauchi, Senator Bala Muhammad (7th left), Vice Chairman, PDP Governors Forum, and Rivers Governor, Siminalayi Fubara (6th left), Acting National Chairman of the party, Umar Damagun (7th right), Delta Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori (6th right), Adamawa Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri (2nd right), Akwa-Ibom Governor, Umo Eno (4th left), Enugu Governor, Peter Mbah (5th left), Bayelsa Governor, Senator Douye Diri (5th right), Oyo Deputy Governor, Bayo Lawal (2nd left), Plateau Governor, Caleb Mutfwang (3rd right), Zamfara Governor, Dauda Lawal (4th right) and Taraba Governor, Agbu Kefas (right) shortly after the forum’s meeting in Asaba yesterday.
- Anyanwu: I remain PDP National Secretary
- Govs pick March 13 for must-hold NEC meeting
- We must tell Atiku, Wike enough of this nonsense, says Bode George
- How Thursday fracas at BoT meeting started
- Senator Ned Nwoko formally quits PDP, may join APC
BY GODWIN OBI, MARTINS DURU
The Peoples Democratic Party Governors Forum yesterday decided to pitch its tent with Sunday Ude-Okoye as the National Secretary of the party, in a twist to the crisis rocking the opposition party.
The forum, rising from an emergency meeting on the crisis in Asaba, Delta State, hinged its decision on the recent judgment of the Court of Appeal, which affirmed Udeh-Okoye, a former National Youth Leader of the PDP, as the party’s authentic National Secretary.
The governors directed the National Working Committee (NWC) to abide by and implement the court’s decision.
But Senator Samuel Anyanwu, who claims to have filed a stay of execution on the Court of Appeal’s decision at the Supreme Court, laughed off the governors’ position when he was contacted last night.
He described their communiqué as nothing to worry about.
A former deputy national chairman of the PDP, Chief Olabode George, decried the situation in his party, warning that the unresolved internal wrangling could cost it the 2027 elections, while the senator representing Delta North, Ned Nwoko, formally left the PDP yesterday, citing deep divisions and factionalization.
The PDP governors, in a communiqué, also asked the NWC to reschedule the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the party for March 13, 2025.
The meeting was originally slated for February.
The Forum said it “noted with delight the ongoing efforts at resolving the crisis in the National Working Committee (NWC), on the position of the National Secretary, and has reaffirmed its support for the Court of Appeal judgment; consequently, the Forum advised the NWC to set up the machinery for the effective implementation of the court judgment.”
It said having examined “all the notices required by law to be given to validly convoke NEC” the NWC should proceed to organise the NEC meeting on March 13.
On the state of the economy, the PDP governors said the macro-economic policies of the Federal Government have “inflicted hardship and pain on the polity” and asked the federal authorities to “either revisit or rejig its macro-economic policies to ameliorate and stop the hardship/pains that they have inflicted on Nigerians as no meaningful/impactful achievements in the states will be achieved until the harsh policies are addressed.”
They hailed themselves for “pursuing policies and programmes that not only ameliorated the plight of the people but were also aimed at creating the foundation for sustainable development in their various states.”
In attendance at the meeting were Governors Bala A. Mohammed (Bauchi); Siminalayi Fubara (Rivers); Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta); Agbu Kefas (Taraba); Ahmadu Fintiri (Adamawa); Dauda Lawal (Zamfara); Ademola Adeleke (Osun); Douye Diri (Bayelsa); Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom); Peter Mbah (Enugu) and Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau).
Oyo State was represented by Deputy Governor Bayo Lawal.
‘I remain PDP National Secretary of PDP’ – Anyanwu
Contacted on the phone last night, Senator Anyanwu insisted that he remained the National Secretary of the PDP regardless of the Asaba communique of the party’s governors.
He said there the position of the governors was nothing to worry about.
“The communique of the PDP Governors’ Forum is nothing to worry about. I remain the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party,” he said.
“Note that under the Constitution of PDP, the Governors’ Forum is not exactly a formal or constitutional organ of the party.
“It is only a pressure group, so their communique is advisory.
“It is very likely that that they did that today (yesterday) to please Governor Peter Mbah who spearheaded this.
“The Constitution of Nigeria and the courts of the land tower above all.
“The Appeal Court gave an order for a stay of execution that is in my favour, and it is clear that as we speak today, in compliance with the law and the order of the court of law, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will not dare deal with any other person in PDP as National Secretary except me.
“As I said earlier, there is nothing in that communique to worry about.”
On December 20, 2024, the Court of Appeal ruled that Ude-Okoye should replace Anyanwu as the PDP national secretary.
It voided a high court judgment which had prevented Anyanwu’s removal, saying the lower court’s verdict was lacking in merit.
The South-East zonal executive committee of the party nominated Udeh-Okoye to replace Anyanwu after he became the PDP gubernatorial candidate in Imo State in 2023.
Only last Wednesday, a fight broke out at the national secretariat of the PDP in Abuja when Udeh-Okoye was not allowed to attend the board of trustees (BoT) meeting.
We must tell Atiku, Wike enough of this nonsense, says Bode George
Chief George, speaking on Arise TV yesterday on the PDP crisis, asked the party to set up a committee to resolve the rift between Anyanwu and Udeh-Okoye over the position of the party’s National Secretary.
He dubbed the situation a public disgrace and a show of shame.
His words: “I have always stated that when you have a little problem and you don’t arrest it on time, it becomes cancerous and affects everybody.
“I believe that at the stage we are, whatever is happening between the two Secretaries—Anyanwu and the other former National Youth Leader of the party—is a reflection of the lackluster approach to solving this problem.
“I was disgusted and ashamed that this kind of crisis would get to a crescendo where our public image is being eroded. It was a show of shame and very disgraceful.
“My take is this: the contentious matter is that the former youth leader went to the Court of Appeal, which gave him judgment that he was right to take over the Office of the National Secretary, and Anyanwu went to another court that ordered the status quo to be maintained.
“It looks depressing and disgusting when you consider that a party, which is like an Iroko tree, is being decimated because of personal ambition. It bothers some of us who have been part of the party since 1998.
“Resolving this crisis at the midpoint doesn’t make any political sense. Let us set up a committee to conduct an in-depth analysis of what happened.
“All sides of the divide are making us very angry. People are starting to say that our party is dead. But we say no, we can disagree without being disagreeable.
“I will remain consistent in my argument that we must go to the root of this madness so that it will never repeat itself.
“We have to set up a proper committee to resolve the mess from that convention. We must avoid this dirty public image.”
He said former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike should stop ‘this nonsense’, a reference to the lingering face-off between the two party stalwarts.
He said party members should stop blaming the ruling All Progressives Congress for the crisis.
“Throwing tantrums and accusing APC, we are just trying to undermine the issue. We must sit down, all sides of the divides.
“Both Atiku and Wike have committed hara-kiri, and we must be bold enough to tell them enough of this nonsense,” George said.
George, who also addressed newsmen at his ikoyi, Lagos residence, warned that the 2027 elections would be disastrous for the PDP unless it unites and wields the big stick on characters destroying it.
“We’ve found ourselves in our current situation due to a self-inflicted crisis. We should bury our individual ambition now and not allow the PDP to crumble,” he said.
“Elders of the party should tell those funny characters to calm down.
“Unless we are united, with equity, fairness and justice being the pedestal for any political decision taken, this party will be heading to disaster in 2027.
“What happened on Wednesday was horrendous, terrible and dreadful.
“We are all aware that the National Secretariat of our party in Abuja is sacred. The premises must be respected by all members and non-members.
“It is sacrilegious that thugs were hired to enter the premises to unleash mayhem, disrupting the 79th Board of Trustees (BoT) meeting.
“If that could happen, then what do you think those who sponsored the thugs will do during National Working Committee (NWC) and National Executive Committee (NEC) meetings?
“I have consistently stated that those with a belligerent attitude, if they are not ready to repent, should be shown the way out.
“As the largest party in Africa, PDP should not be turned into an ‘Agbero’ party by any member with an inordinate ambition. We have rules and regulations that govern our party.”
Apugo: How Wednesday’s fracas started
A party stalwart from the South East, Chukwudi Apugo, said yesterday that Udeh-Okoye should not have been invited to the Wednesday’s Board of Trustees’ (BoT’s) meeting.
He said it was wrong of BoT chairman Adolphus Wabara to have listed Udeh-Okoye as national secretary on the day.
“At what stage did it occur to him (Wabara) to invite Sunday Ude-Okoye who is not a member of the Board of Trustees of the party?” Apugo asked.
“If Anyanwu was recognised and invited to the meeting as a serving National Secretary of the Party, what then was the motive of Wabara in inviting Sunday Udeh-Okoye in the same capacity as a serving National Secretary?”
Apugo said that all parties should maintain the status quo ante bellum as directed till the matter is finally determined by the court, and any action contrary to that position is reprehensible and should be properly sanctioned.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Pythrocin distributed by Pinnacle Health Pharmaceuticals Ltd
