Police Action At SDP National Secretariat Aimed at Stopping Our National Convention — Gombe

The Social Democratic Party (SDP), led by Prof. Abubakar Sadiq Gombe, has blamed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for allowing the faction led by Shehu Musa Gabam to take over the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.

Gombe said the police sealed off the secretariat in the early hours of the morning and subsequently allowed the group loyal to Shehu Musa Gabam to gain access.

“This was a calculated attempt to truncate our convention. We will not be intimidated out of our own party,” he said.

He also stated that the officers cited a possible breakdown of law and order as the reason for evacuating elected National Working Committee (NWC) members who were preparing documents for the May 9 convention in Bauchi.

“They claimed they were preventing violence, but they created it by allowing outsiders in,” he added.

Gombe alleged that the same officers subsequently permitted Gabam’s group to force its way into offices occupied by the legitimate leadership for nearly 11 months at 17 Nairobi Street.

The incident follows a protracted leadership dispute that escalated after INEC updated its website in late April to list Gabam as National Chairman “by court order.”

The commission based its action on a March 27, 2026 Court of Appeal judgment in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CV/126/2026, which held that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to determine the party’s leadership.

The Gombe-led camp maintains that the appellate court did not declare Gabam chairman and that the ruling was limited to the Ekiti State governorship primary dispute.

“The judgment did not install anyone as chairman. INEC is misreading the court’s decision,” he stated.

Gombe referenced a December 19, 2025 Supreme Court judgment in which INEC was fined ₦2 million and cautioned against interfering in the internal affairs of political parties.

He said the National Executive Committee (NEC) convened a statutory meeting on March 9, 2026, at Newton Park and Resort Hotel in Uthobomfo, with INEC represented by Deputy Director of Monitoring, Alhaji Masood Hassan.

At that meeting, the NEC ratified Gombe’s appointment as National Chairman and approved the expulsion of Gabam and Mustafa Wona Uchichukwu for failing to appear before a disciplinary committee investigating alleged financial misconduct.

He noted that Gabam did not appeal the suspension or expulsion within the five working days stipulated under Article 19(c) of the SDP Constitution since October 2025.

For his part, National Secretary Dr. Olu Agunloye said 14 of the 15 NWC members elected in 2022 remain in office, with only two expelled and one voluntarily retired.

“There is no leadership vacuum in the SDP. Our structure is intact and recognised,” Agunloye said.

He further confirmed that INEC sent a letter on Thursday morning inviting the party to an alternative dispute resolution meeting, but stressed that no internal dispute currently exists.

“We don’t know what dispute they are referring to,” he added.

Agunloye said he contacted the Inspector General of Police during the incident and was directed to the FCT Commissioner of Police, yet the evacuation still went ahead.

Despite the disruption, the Gombe-led leadership said the party would proceed with its Bauchi convention.