Inside The Chaos Tearing People’s Democratic Party Apart

Leaders of the troubled Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had hoped that the party’s recent national convention would mark the beginning of a long-awaited renewal, a symbolic step toward stabilising a fractured political structure and sending a message to Nigerians that the country’s biggest opposition party still had the capacity to challenge for power in 2027. Instead, the event deepened the crisis rocking the once-vibrant ruling party.

Days after the Ibadan elective convention, the PDP was again drifting through one of the most turbulent moments of its 27-year history, struggling with legal confusion, expulsions, boycotts, violent confrontations, and a widening trust deficit among its top leaders.

Yet the storm did not start in Ibadan, the host city of the elective national convention. It began in the courts. Days before delegates arrived, the Federal High Court in Abuja had halted the exercise following a suit filed by three party officials who alleged constitutional breaches. Justice James Omotosho had restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from monitoring or recognising the convention, while Justice Peter Lifu issued a separate ruling insisting that the party must accommodate former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, before proceeding.

But hours later in Ibadan, a different court pulled the party in the opposite direction. The Oyo State High Court ordered INEC to monitor the event and barred anyone from stopping it. With contradictory judicial directives hanging over the party, the convention proceeded in a thick cloud of uncertainty.

Even before the opening formalities, the internal divisions were unmistakable. Almost half of the 36 state delegations stayed away, and five state chapters had been suspended. Several prominent party leaders, including the Minister in charge of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike; a former Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose; and National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, were among those expelled from the party.

Though speakers on the podium preached unity and rebirth, senior party insiders who spoke to LEADERSHIP Weekend said the convention was less about reconciliation and more about strategic consolidation of power by influential governors’ intent on reshaping the party hierarchy ahead of the next election cycle.

The crisis, however, burst into the open barely two days later. At the PDP national secretariat in Abuja, rival factions clashed after supporters of the suspended National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu, stormed the building, insisting the convention was illegal and that he remained the authentic party’s secretary.

They were confronted by loyalists of the newly installed leadership, and despite police attempts to restrict access, both camps forced their way into parts of the complex. Stones were hurled, chairs were smashed, and tear gas was fired as police struggled to restore order. For several tense minutes, the headquarters of Nigeria’s largest opposition party resembled a conflict zone rather than the centre of an organisation preparing for national elections.

Far from easing, the PDP crisis may continue to broaden. With fresh legal battles looming, deepening mistrust among party blocs, and new confrontations emerging across state chapters, the PDP now stands at a crossroads.

Amid the chaos, newly elected National Chairman, Samuni Turaki (SAN), publicly accused a serving minister of leading armed thugs to the secretariat. He escalated concerns further with an unusual appeal, saying: “I want to call on President Trump to come and save democracy in Nigeria. Democracy is under threat.”

His remarks drew immediate condemnation from the All Progressives Congress (APC). Its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, labelled the comment “reckless, unpatriotic, and dangerous,” accusing the PDP chairman of inviting foreign meddling and warning that such statements undermined national security.

Attempts to restore calm came from the Chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT), Senator Adolphus Wabara. He stressed that the board would not take sides, describing the roots of the crisis as largely self-inflicted, the result of unchecked personal ambitions that had eroded internal cohesion.

But the unrest soon reached the BoT itself. Former National Chairman and then BoT Secretary, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, resigned his position, citing zoning concerns after the emergence of another national chairman from his geopolitical zone. His resignation letter, dated November 17, 2025, submitted from Kaduna, was described by a top party source as the outcome of growing discomfort over the direction of the unfolding conflict.

A brief moment of relief came when INEC rejected a request by Muhammad Abdulrahman, the acting national chairman appointed by the Anyanwu faction, to postpone the December 8 Ekiti governorship primaries. In a letter signed by the Commission’s Secretary, Rose O. Anthony, INEC reminded the party that notices of convention or congress must be jointly signed by the national chairman and national secretary. Since the request did not meet that requirement, the commission declined to recognise it.
Outside the PDP, reactions continued to pour in. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) blamed the crisis on years of internal decay. Its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, told reporters in Abuja that only defectors willing to obey the ADC’s code of conduct would be accepted, emphasising that the party would not accommodate what he called the “indiscipline” now visible in the PDP.

Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Barrister Solomon Dalung, also told LEADERSHIP Weekend that the development in the PDP should worry all Nigerians. He lamented that a party that once governed for 16 years and ushered in a return to democratic rule after a long military interregnum had been pushed to the brink by forces who “do not understand how the party was formed.”

“This situation should be worrisome to us as a people because without PDP, the history of our democracy is incomplete,” he said. “This crisis is a major threat. It happened in the First Republic between the Action Group, and democracy collapsed. We saw the same in the Second Republic. The crises of Ajasin and Omoboriowo also contributed to the collapse of that era. The crisis in PDP now portends danger.”

Dalung warned the ruling party against enabling the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, to “foment trouble” in the PDP, arguing that the APC itself was not safe if individuals with “dual loyalties” were allowed to thrive. “He is setting a bad precedent,” Dalung said. “The kind of politics he is introducing is not even good for the ruling party because many may copy it to destabilise the APC in the future.”
On whether the PDP can emerge stronger from the turmoil, Dalung expressed doubts. He alleged that external forces were stoking disunity to cripple the party ahead of 2027, adding that the scale of the current conflict suggests a deliberate attempt to prevent the emergence of a strong presidential challenger.

However, a PDP governorship aspirant for the 2027 election in Kogi State, Aminu Nda Onu, sees the crisis differently. Onu, who spoke with our correspondent in Abuja on Thursday, said the party will bounce back and win elections at all levels. He, however, appealed to warring factions to harmonise their differences and share the positions equally for peace to reign.

“Relevant stakeholders should come together, let us agree on a round table and share the positions for the two groups equally; this will bring harmony among them and strengthen the party for future elections. I do not doubt in my mind that the party will bounce back and win all the elections,” Onu stated.

Far from easing, the PDP crisis may continue to broaden. With fresh legal battles looming, deepening mistrust among party blocs, and new confrontations emerging across state chapters, the PDP now stands at a crossroads. What began as a quest for renewal has transformed into an escalating struggle for control, one that could reshape the party’s identity and redefine Nigeria’s opposition politics as the 2027 elections draw closer.