Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), plunged deeper into chaos on Monday after two rival groups announced separate National Executive Committee (NEC) meetings at the party’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.
The showdown follows a bitterly disputed national convention held in Ibadan on Saturday, where supporters of Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde elected a new National Working Committee (NWC) led by Tanimu Turaki and expelled several allies of Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike.
Undeterred by their expulsion, Wike’s camp—led by the former National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu—issued a notice summoning an “emergency 103rd NEC meeting” and a Board of Trustees (BoT) session at the PDP’s Wadata Plaza headquarters. The BoT gathering is scheduled for 11 a.m., followed by the NEC meeting at 2 p.m.
Anyanwu’s notice described the sessions as mandatory and intended to address “crucial matters” facing the party.
In response, the newly elected National Chairman, Tanimu Turaki, visited the Nigeria Police Force headquarters in Abuja on Monday to alert authorities of what he called a planned disruption by the expelled members.
Speaking to reporters, Turaki insisted that those expelled at the Ibadan convention have no legal standing in the party. “Next to God, the national convention is the highest organ of any political party,” he said. “Anyone operating from our secretariat outside the leadership we elected will be treated as an interloper.”
Turaki added that he would personally lead the new NWC into the headquarters on Tuesday and was ready to “defend our party and our democracy.” His faction later issued its own invitation for an emergency meeting at the same venue and time.
Prominent voices weighed in on the escalating dispute. Expelled National Organising Secretary Umar Bature told The PUNCH he would attend the Anyanwu-convened meeting and dismissed his removal as invalid.
Party elder Chief Bode George, however, branded Anyanwu’s meeting illegal. “He has been expelled. He should wake up and go to his village,” George said.
An anonymous source from the Makinde camp questioned the legitimacy of the Ibadan convention, claiming only 16 of Nigeria’s 36 states sent delegates—an insufficient number, the source argued, to elect national officers.
The turmoil has been compounded by conflicting court orders. A Federal High Court in Abuja had barred the party from holding the Ibadan convention, while an Oyo State High Court permitted it and instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to monitor proceedings.
Several governors, including Ahmadu Fintiri (Adamawa), Caleb Muftwang (Plateau), Bala Mohammed (Bauchi), and host governor Seyi Makinde, attended the event, where Wike, Anyanwu, acting National Chairman Umar Damagum, former Ekiti governor Ayodele Fayose, and former South-South Vice Chairman Dan Orbih were formally expelled.
In a separate development, former Kaduna State Governor Ahmed Makarfi resigned as Secretary of the PDP Board of Trustees on Monday. In his November 17 letter, Makarfi explained that both the new National Chairman and BoT Secretary now hail from the North-West zone, and zoning principles required him to step aside.
ICYMI
With rival groups vowing to occupy the same building on Tuesday, security has been stepped up around Wadata Plaza. Nigerians are watching closely to see whether Africa’s once-dominant opposition party can resolve its deepening crisis before the 2027 general elections.
