PDP Slams Wike-backed Caretaker Committee, Accuses Group Of Illegality, Contempt Of Court

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has strongly condemned what it described as the “purported constitution” of a National Caretaker Committee by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and his political allies, accusing the group of deepening illegality and attempting to falsely speak in the name of the opposition party.

In a press statement on Monday signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the Barr. Kabiru Turaki, SAN-led PDP said the move by Wike and his associates was designed to serve their “personal political affairs” and had no legal or constitutional backing within the party’s structure.

According to the party, Wike and those involved had already been expelled from the PDP, stressing that they lacked the authority to constitute any organ on behalf of the party, even if they were still members.

“The purported constitution of a so-called National Caretaker Committee… would have passed unnoticed… if they had not attempted to falsely cloak it in the name of the Peoples Democratic Party,” the statement said, adding that the PDP’s statutory organs remain intact under what it described as the legitimate leadership of Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, SAN.

The party maintained that both the National Executive Committee (NEC) and the Board of Trustees (BoT) are functional and comprising “dignified individuals” who, it said, cannot be influenced or “commodified” by political pressure.

PDP further revealed that Wike, through people it called his agents, Alhaji Mohammed Abdulrahman and Senator Sam Anyanwu, had approached the Federal High Court in Abuja on November 21, 2025, challenging the validity of the party’s recent national convention and seeking its nullification.

The suit, filed before Justice J.O. Abdulmalik, also sought an interim injunction to stop recognition of the convention’s outcome, which the court reportedly refused. The court, however, cautioned all parties against taking steps that could undermine the eventual judgment.

“Their application for an interim injunction was refused, while all parties were cautioned against taking actions that could render the court’s eventual judgment nugatory,” the PDP stated.

The party accused the Wike-led group of acting in contempt of court by proceeding to announce what it described as a “fictitious” caretaker committee while the matter is pending, arguing that such actions have altered the legal standing of the plaintiffs in the ongoing suit.

Describing the development as part of a wider attempt to weaken the party since 2023, the PDP alleged that the actions were aimed at politically incapacitating it and preventing it from performing its role as Nigeria’s main opposition party.

“This latest drama represents nothing but a further deepening of the trenches of illegality,” the statement said, alleging that the group had become “a tool in the ruling party’s playbook.”

Despite the controversy, the party reassured its members and supporters that it remains focused on internal reforms and rebuilding.

“We reassure our members and the nation that the PDP remains firmly on a path of rebirth, anchored on transparency, equity, honesty, and inclusiveness,” the statement added.