…Lamido Backs Caretaker Committee, Urges Party Members To Embrace Reconciliation
Daud Olatunji
The internal crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party deepened on Sunday as a faction believed to be loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, installed new state executives in Bayelsa, Ekiti and Oyo states.
The congresses, held over the weekend, were organised by the faction’s caretaker leadership ahead of its planned national convention scheduled for March 28 in Abuja.
The move followed a judgment of the Court of Appeal which nullified the November 15 and 16 national convention held in Ibadan, Oyo State, where Tanimu Turaki had emerged as the party’s national chairman.
As part of preparations for the convention, the Wike-backed structure had earlier conducted ward and zonal congresses before proceeding with the state congresses across the country.
Bayelsa congress
In Bayelsa State, Alabh Turnah emerged as the state chairman through a consensus arrangement during a congress held at the party’s newly inaugurated secretariat in Yenagoa.
The exercise, conducted by an electoral panel led by Austin Sor, was monitored by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission amid tight security.
Other members of the 20-man State Working Committee include Ato Ebibofayei as secretary and Biobelemoyei Goniwari as treasurer.
Speaking after his emergence, Turnah expressed confidence that the party would bounce back strongly.
“PDP is Bayelsa and Bayelsa is PDP. Do not be deceived by claims that the party is now an opposition in the state. In practical terms, PDP remains the majority party,” he said.
He also expressed optimism that the party would reclaim power in future elections, noting that the new leadership would work to reposition the party ahead of the 2027 polls.
Ekiti leadership
In Ekiti State, Lanre Omolase emerged as chairman of the faction backed by Wike and former governor Ayodele Fayose.
Omolase pledged to rebuild the party and restore it to electoral relevance in the state.
“I will lead the party with the fear of God and ensure that PDP regains its lost ground in Ekiti,” he said during the inauguration in Ado Ekiti.
A member of the PDP National Caretaker Working Committee, Bisi Kolawole, said the national leadership was working to rebuild the party’s fractured structure and restore unity.
According to him, consultations were ongoing among leaders and stakeholders to strengthen internal democracy and reposition the party for future elections.
Also speaking, the chairman of the PDP State Congress Committee, Philip Adebiyi, described the congress as peaceful and expressed optimism that reconciliation efforts would unite aggrieved members.
Oyo congress
In Oyo State, delegates at a congress held at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, Ibadan, elected Abdulrahman Akinoso, a lecturer in the Department of Food Technology at the University of Ibadan, as the state chairman.
Other officers elected include Abiola Olaonipekun as secretary, Latifah Latifu as women leader.
In his inaugural address, Akinoso urged party members to set aside internal disputes and focus on strengthening the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“Our immediate assignment is to align with the timetable released by INEC for the 2027 elections and mobilise members for the upcoming e-membership registration,” he said.
However, the faction loyal to Turaki rejected the move, warning that it could undermine ongoing reconciliation efforts within the party.
In a statement, the spokesman for the Turaki-led National Working Committee, Ini Ememobong, described the dissolution and replacement of state executives as illegal and unwarranted.
He urged party members across the states to disregard the directive and continue performing their lawful duties.
Meanwhile, a founding member of the PDP and former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has urged party members to accept the caretaker committee arrangement backed by Wike in order to restore unity in the opposition party.
Lamido made the appeal while addressing journalists during a Ramadan Iftar with PDP leaders and supporters in Bamaina, his hometown in Jigawa State.
The elder statesman described Wike as a politically strategic actor who moved quickly to fill the leadership vacuum created after the tenure of the party’s National Working Committee expired.
“Wike is someone who is really clever. He realised the situation and moved to form a caretaker committee. By the time the tenure of the existing NWC ended, the only structure in place was the one backed by Wike,” Lamido said.
While acknowledging existing disagreements within the party, Lamido stressed the need for dialogue and reconciliation among stakeholders.
According to him, even those who disagree with Wike should engage him in the spirit of unity to stabilise the party and reposition it for future political contests.
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