PDP On The Brink! Wike And Powerful Northern Governor In Fierce Battle For Party Control

PDP On The Brink! Wike And Powerful Northern Governor In Fierce Battle For Party ControlThe internal crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has deepened, leading to a division within the National Working Committee (NWC). The rift centers around a power struggle in Rivers State, with former Rivers Governor and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, clashing with Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed.

The conflict intensified after Senator Iyorchia Ayu was removed as National Chairman, and Wike began pushing to control party structures in Rivers. Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum has faced mounting pressure from dissenting members of the party, who are calling for his resignation.

Tensions boiled over when the Damagum-led NWC, aligned with Wike, approved contentious PDP congresses in Rivers State while postponing a critical National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting from September 26 to October 24. This decision sparked conflict between Wike and Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, with a majority of PDP governors siding with Fubara and calling for a review of the congresses. Wike retaliated by issuing a warning, threatening disruption in the states of governors who interfered with Rivers’ affairs. The PDP Governors’ Forum, chaired by Bala Mohammed, condemned Wike’s threats, calling them irresponsible.

Wike’s faction suffered a setback during the October 5 local government elections when 22 of the 23 newly elected chairmen were from the Action Peoples Party (APP), diminishing his influence in the region.

On October 10, the NWC, through a statement by the party’s National Director of Publicity, Chinwe Nnorom, announced the suspension of National Publicity Secretary Debo Ologunagba and National Legal Adviser Kamaldeen Ajibade (SAN). The suspension followed allegations of their opposition to Damagum’s leadership and resistance to Wike’s control over party structures.

In response, Ologunagba’s faction of the NWC suspended Damagum and National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu, accusing them of anti-party activities, particularly involving a court case with Rivers lawmakers who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Ologunagba’s camp appointed National Treasurer Yayari Ahmed Mohammed as acting National Chairman, further splitting the party.

The PDP’s Board of Trustees (BoT), led by Senator Adolphus Wabara, has urged calm, calling for both factions to de-escalate tensions and work toward unity. A senior NWC member from Bala Mohammed’s faction accused Wike of directing Damagum to suspend Ologunagba and Ajibade for their opposition to Wike’s interests and criticism of his financial management.

The deepening divisions became public after a heated NWC meeting, with the ongoing Wike-Fubara conflict over control of Rivers State at the center of the party’s internal strife.