Plateau PDP Divides Again As Wike Camp Elects Tongshep Chair

The Plateau State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is grappling with renewed internal divisions following the emergence of a faction aligned with Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, which elected Peter Tongshep as its new state chairman on Tuesday.

Tongshep emerged alongside 38 other executive members during what the group described as a peaceful consensus congress held in Jos.

The event proceeded under tight security, with heavy deployment of security personnel to ensure orderliness was supervised by a seven-member delegation from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The congress attracted prominent figures from the Wike-aligned faction, including former Sports Ministers Damishi Sango and Musa I. Azi, Sarpiya Danyaro, Aminu Zang, as well as Board of Trustees (BoT) members Timothy Golu and Rt. Hon. Johnbul Shekarau, among other party stakeholders.

This development comes amid heightened calls for reconciliation within the Plateau PDP, as rival groups continue to jostle for control of the party’s structures against the backdrop of the national leadership crisis rocking the main opposition party.

Meanwhile, Dr. Samaila Rukuba, who identified himself as the newly elected PDP spokesman for the state, described the congress as “very peaceful and orderly.”

He noted that with the conclusion of state congresses, attention has now shifted to the national convention scheduled for March 29 in Abuja.

Rukuba urged all well-meaning PDP members in Plateau to work towards reconciliation and focus on reclaiming what he termed the party’s “runaway mandate.”

However, the official Plateau State chapter of the PDP swiftly dismissed any notion of a fresh congress.

In a strongly- worded statement by its state publicity secretary, Hon. Choji Felix Dalyop, the party described circulating reports of a planned fresh state congress on Tuesday, as baseless fabrications orchestrated by mischief-makers .

The statement emphasised that the current leadership, led by Hon Raymond Dabo, emerged from a peaceful and transparent elective congress held on Saturday, October 25, 2025, which produced the chairman and 38 other executives.

It stressed that the exercise was observed by INEC and conducted in compliance with the PDP constitution and the Electoral Act.

“Our great party wishes to explicitly inform its teeming members, stakeholders, and the general public that it has absolutely no reason, intention, or plan to substitute or conduct a fresh state congress to replace the duly elected chairman alongside 38 other executive members,” the statement reads in part.

The statement added that the tenure of the current executive committee runs until 2028, and no official communication exists to suggest otherwise.

The party warned those behind the alleged rumours and reaffirmed its readiness to participate in the 2026 local government elections under PLASIEC and the 2027 general polls.