S’Court Verdict Fails To End PDP Crisis As Rival Camps Screen Aspirants

By Ademu Idakwo, Olakunle Olasanmi ,Abuja, Obansa Ibrahim,Lokoja, Patrick Ochoga, Benin and Aza Msue, Makurdi

The leadership crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party has deepened despite the Supreme Court judgment on the party’s prolonged dispute, as rival factions loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and former Minister of Special Duties, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, continue parallel sales of nomination forms, screening of aspirants and primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The development has triggered fresh concerns among lawyers and party stakeholders, who warned that the unresolved leadership tussle could lead to prolonged legal battles and possible disqualification of candidates produced by rival factions.

The Turaki-led faction, reportedly backed by Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and other stakeholders, said it had concluded the sale of forms, commenced screening exercises nationwide and begun primaries for various elective positions.

According to figures released by the faction, 3,181 aspirants obtained nomination forms for elective offices across the country.

The faction said the figure included 2,122 State House of Assembly aspirants, 748 House of Representatives aspirants, 198 Senate aspirants, 112 governorship aspirants and one presidential aspirant.

Officials of the faction further disclosed that screening committees had commenced verification of credentials and documents submitted by aspirants in preparation for the primaries.

The figures and screening exercise could not be independently verified as of press time.

The Wike-backed faction, however, dismissed the exercise, insisting that the rival camp lacked the legal authority to conduct party activities, including the sale of forms, screening of aspirants and conduct of primaries.

Speaking during a recent media interaction in Abuja, Wike questioned the legitimacy of the process and challenged the rival faction to operate an official party account for the collection of nomination fees.

“If you are saying you want to sell forms, to whom will you submit them? Is that not fraud?” he asked.

The minister also warned property owners in the Federal Capital Territory against allowing the rival faction to use their premises as party offices.

Meanwhile, the PDP House of Representatives candidate for Idah Federal Constituency, Paul Ukwenya, dismissed claims of factionalisation within the party in Kogi State.

According to him, the party in the state operates under the leadership of the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led executive committee, which he described as the only structure recognised by law and by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

“In Kogi PDP, we do not have any faction. We belong to the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led executive committee. That is the only executive committee recognised by law and listed on the INEC portal,” he said.

“Our operations are backed by the law, the party constitution and recognised by the electoral umpire, INEC. Therefore, we have no fear at all,” he added.

The dispute follows months of legal battles over the control of the PDP after parallel conventions and conflicting court judgments by rival groups within the party.

Reacting to the development, lawyers warned that the parallel conduct of party activities by rival factions could create serious legal complications for aspirants and the party if the leadership dispute remains unresolved before candidates are submitted to INEC.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Abdul Balogun, warned politicians against contesting elections under the PDP until the crisis is resolved.

According to him, it is safer to contest under other political platforms than the PDP.

“Until the leadership crisis is completely put to rest, wise politicians should not contest under the PDP because despite the Supreme Court judgement, the two sides are still laying claims to be the authentic faction. The legal battle will surely continue after the election because fresh issues will come up for the court to determine,” he said.

Another Abuja-based lawyer, Patricia Nwosu, said the situation could result in multiple court cases and possible disqualification of candidates if the nomination process is successfully challenged in court.

Political observers said the lingering leadership crisis could weaken the PDP ahead of the 2027 general elections if the dispute over the party’s leadership structure is not resolved quickly.

Also reacting, the PDP candidate for the Egor/Ikpoba-Okha Federal Constituency seat in Edo State, Ifaluyi Ogbeide Isibor, expressed concern over the lingering division within the party, warning that the parallel screening process being championed by factions loyal to Wike and Makinde could expose aspirants to legal uncertainties.

Speaking in a telephone interview, Isibor said it was troubling that the PDP remained engulfed in internal division despite the pronouncement of the Supreme Court on the leadership tussle.

“The PDP is having to go through this level of division even after the Supreme Court made pronouncements and gave judgement on the matter. Both sides are still laying claims to some level of superiority and this has put the party in great danger and even aspirants at a loss because people are uncertain as to where the end game will tilt,” he said.

He further stated that the situation had continued to create confusion among party faithful and aspirants, especially as INEC appeared to have recognised one of the factions.

“INEC has obviously taken sides and recognised one faction. We were thinking that after the Supreme Court judgement both sides of the leadership would come together to resolve the matter for the sake of the party and most especially for the sake of Nigeria, which suffers most when there is no strong opposition,” he added.

The PDP chieftain, however, expressed optimism that the party still had enough time to reconcile aggrieved camps and prevent further crisis before the election season fully begins.

“While I am still hopeful that we have time to bridge the gap and mend fences, I am not looking forward to any confusion or litigation at the end of the day, especially after elections,” he stated.

He noted that although the Supreme Court made certain pronouncements, many party members believed the judgment did not comprehensively address issues surrounding the controversial November convention and the subsequent emergence of an interim leadership structure.

“The Supreme Court was not as clear as expected. It made some pronouncements but did not substantially address arguments surrounding the November convention. An interim committee was put in place, but it does not appear INEC has accepted the caretaker committee as the authentic national leadership of the PDP,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Benue State chapter of the Wike-backed faction of the PDP insisted that there was no faction within the party and maintained that the party remained united under its recognised national leadership.

Speaking with LEADERSHIP Weekend, Benue PDP State Publicity Secretary, Bright Yima Antyo, said the Supreme Court judgment had already settled the leadership dispute.

“The Supreme Court has settled the issue in the recent judgment. We have only one PDP leadership headed by our national chairman, Abdulrahman Mohammed and Samuel Anyanwu as National Secretary,” he said.

“We are all one and there is only one PDP. We don’t have two leaders. We have sold forms to aspirants and we are in the process of nominating our candidates through consensus or direct primaries according to new electoral laws,” he stated.