Factional National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Kabiru Turaki, SAN, has taken a jibe at the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, as the leadership crisis in the party deepens.
At a party function on Wednesday in Abuja, Turaki challenged the Wike-backed faction to show Nigerians their own candidate for the Ekiti State governorship election coming up in June 2026.
Turaki spoke while presenting a certificate of return to Dr Oluwole Oluyede, who emerged as the PDP candidate for the Ekiti governorship poll.
“I challenge anybody or a group of individuals laying claim to the leadership of the PDP to present their own candidate for the governorship election in Ekiti State for the world to see,” he said.
While presenting the certificate to Oluyede, the party chairman publicly displayed official documents with the name and logo of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) relating to the governorship candidate.
The documents included INEC’s attestation and certification of the primary election from which Oluyede emerged as the PDP candidate.
He also displayed two A4-size official envelopes in INEC colours and with the logo, which he said were provided by the electoral body for the purposes of packaging documents relating to Oluyede’s candidature.
Addressing Oluyede, the chairman said, “Take this form and envelope. They are from INEC. You must fill out this form and bring it back to us so that we can return it to INEC as required by law.”
Shortly after receiving his certificate, Oluyede thanked the leadership for its support and pledged to deliver Ekiti for the PDP.
He extended a hand of fellowship to some of his opponents who had challenged his victory in court, saying that there can only be one candidate.
“Court cases are a distraction that sends the wrong signals to members of the public. There can only be one candidate, and today, that candidate happens to be me,” he said.
The faction’s National Secretary, Taofeek Arapaja, in a vote of thanks, said the PDP will not take the support of the Nigerian people for granted.
Arapaja dismissed the claim by a former Ekiti governor, Ayo Fayose, that the PDP is dead, pointing out the irony in the claim. Fayose is a member of the PDP faction loyal to Wike.
“Some people said the PDP is dead, but they are still fighting to take over the party. If the PDP is dead, why then are they fighting over a party they said is dead? If the PDP is dead, why are they fighting over a dead party?” Arapaja said.
He restated the party’s decision to retrieve its mandates from governors and federal and state legislators who defected to the APC.
“We will go after these people who traded our mandates for a pot of porridge. We will retrieve our mandates from them,” he said.
The Turaki-led NWC had earlier in the day met with 30 chairmen of 30 PDP states who pledged their support for the leadership.
Among the dignitaries at the event were Prof. Jerry Gana, Niger State Governor Babangida Aliyu, and PDP lawmakers at the Senate and House of Representatives, among others.