Delegates Arrive For PDP’s Abuja National Convention

Delegates of the Peoples Democratic Party from across the country are trooping into the velodrome at the National Stadium, Abuja, for the party’s national convention.

More than 2,500 delegates are expected to attend the gathering.

The convention, hosted by the PDP faction backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, is aimed at electing new national executives for the party, following the conclusion of congresses in various states.

The PDP National Caretaker Committee, led by Abdulrahman Mohammed as chairman and Senator Samuel Anyanwu as National Secretary, has been managing the affairs of the faction in the buildup to the convention.

The convention comes amid opposition from a rival PDP faction led by Tanimu Turaki, which is backed by the two PDP state governors remaining in the party—Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and Seyi Makinde of Oyo State.

Following an apparent breakdown in peace talks, the governors-backed faction has rejected the convention and filed an appeal at the Supreme Court against the nullification of their convention held last year in Ibadan, Oyo State.

However, the PDP National Caretaker Committee has insisted that the convention will proceed as planned, dismissing the legal action instituted by the opposing group.

It will be recalled that the Wike-backed faction had rejected last year’s Ibadan convention, during which they were expelled from the party for alleged anti-party activities. They later won their case at the Court of Appeal, which declared the Ibadan gathering illegal.