The faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) being led by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has threatened to halt the party’s planned National Convention unless the party meets its five-point demand.
Rising from its meeting, which was hosted by Wike at his Asokoro residence on Monday night, the group, through former Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom, warned that failure to accede to its demand will spell doom for the party.
Ortom who read the communique to the waiting journalists on Tuesday morning said the PDP is at a defining crossroads warning that all judicial rulings should be obeyed to avoid deepening divisions in the party.
The faction at the meeting included four of the then renegade governors called the G-5. They were Ortom; former Abia State governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, his Enugu counterpart, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, and Wike, the founder of the group.
The fifth member, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde has pulled out and is leading the central PDP to enable it to organise its convention and has been stoutly opposing Wike’s action against the party.
Alao at the meeting is Wike’s ally, ex-Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose; who recently got reprieve from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) regarding financial fraud when he was governor.
The National Secretary of the PDP, Senator Sam Anyanwu, a strong ally of Wike, also attended the meeting.
In the communique issued on behalf of the group and signed by Ortom, the stakeholders warned that failure to meet their demands would “render any purported national convention invalid, as legitimate members of the party would be disenfranchised”.
The six demands were:
*A fresh congresses must be held in Ebonyi and Anambra states, in strict compliance with subsisting court judgments
*A new South East Zonal Congress must be urgently conducted.
*The outcome of the South South Congress in Calabar, already upheld by the courts, must be respected.
*PDP should immediately conduct the Ekiti LGA congresses, in line with judicial pronouncements.
*There should be no micro-zoning of offices, beyond the general zoning formula already adopted by the National Executive Committee NEC, to maintain peace and stability.
*The national chairmanship position must remain in the North Central, consistent with the zoning arrangement of the 2021 convention.
The leaders stressed that the PDP is at a “defining crossroads,” and that any attempt to sideline valid members or ignore judicial rulings would only deepen divisions.
“Unity cannot be built on disenfranchisement, exclusion, or the neglect of valid judicial pronouncements,” the communiqué read. It added that only transparency and fairness would guarantee a credible convention.
The faction cautioned that failure to comply with its “demands shall render any purported national convention invalid, as legitimate members of the party would be disenfranchised.
“The PDP was built on the foundation of inclusivity, fairness, and justice. To reclaim its pride of place as Nigeria’s true opposition, the party must now rise above narrow interests and embrace collective responsibility”, they urged.
They emphasised that “the PDP was built on the foundation of inclusivity, fairness, and justice. Therefore, to reclaim its pride of place as the leading opposition and the true alternative for Nigerians, the party must now rise above narrow interests and embrace collective responsibility.
“We, the Eminent Leaders and Concerned Stakeholders, remain steadfast in our loyalty to the party and resolute in our determination to work with all organs and leaders of the PDP to ensure that the forthcoming National Convention becomes a watershed moment — a moment where unity triumphs over division, and justice prevails over impunity.
“Only then can the PDP speak with one voice, act with one heart, and march with renewed strength toward victory,” they added in the communique.
