When the pillars of a party shake, even its most sacred rituals become battlegrounds. The Peoples Democratic Party’s November 15 and 16 convention, which should have been a moment of reconciliation and direction, has instead spiralled into days of legal confusion, factional fury, and open confrontations. ISMAEEL UTHMAN writes
The national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party has turned out to be a spectacle revealing the fragility of the party’s internal cohesion and the high stakes of its leadership struggle.
While the Ibadan convention was conducted in defiance of three separate Federal High Court orders, a faction of the National Working Committee of the PDP, led by the party’s former National Chairman, Umar Damagum, relied on approval by an Oyo State High Court for the gathering.
Justice Ladiran Akintola of the Oyo State High Court had on November 4 issued an interim order permitting the party to continue its convention plans without obstruction.
The judgment came after Justice James Omotosho of the Abuja Federal High Court on October 31 stopped the PDP from holding the convention, declaring that the planned exercise contravened the 1999 Constitution, the PDP Constitution, and the guidelines of the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Similarly, on November 6, Justice Peter Lifu of another Abuja Federal High Court restrained the Damagum-led NWC from proceeding with the convention pending the determination of a suit filed by a former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido.
While delivering judgment on a related matter on November 14, Justice Lifu again restrained INEC from supervising, monitoring, or recognising any convention conducted by the PDP without including the former governor as a contestant.
Legal experts stated that a Federal High Court and a State High Court are courts of coordinate jurisdiction, and that both are superior courts of record and occupy similar constitutional status under the Nigerian judicial hierarchy.
The convention
Amid the controversies, the convention was held and produced a new National Working Committee, led by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Kabiru Turaki, the new National Chairman. The convention also led to the expulsion of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike; the factional National Secretary of the party, Samuel Anyanwu; Kamaldeen Ajibade, SAN; former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose; Austin Nwachukwu; and several others for anti-party activities.
Sunday PUNCH notes that the convention is the highest decision-making organ of a political party, as it produces the National Working Committee, the body that directs the affairs of the party for its statutory tenure.
Section 33 (2) of the PDP Constitution says, “The National Convention shall be the supreme and controlling authority of the party within the limits prescribed in this Constitution, and it shall be the principal representative, policy-making and administering body of the Party. Except in the exercise of the functions granted only to other bodies as specified in this Constitution or in the regulations made pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution, the National Convention shall have supremacy in all matters pertaining to the Party, and all officers and organs of the party shall be bound in the exercise of their functions by the decisions of the National Convention.”
The power of the convention explains why the two factions of the PDP embarked on counter-judicial measures to take control of the party leadership amid a protracted internal crisis. The development, analysts say, also exposes how politicians increasingly rely on the judiciary to weaken opposing camps.
Political observers add that the conflicting rulings surrounding the PDP convention created confusion and raised questions about the consistency and objectivity of the courts.
In his view, the Deputy National Youth Leader of the PDP, Timothy Osadolor, said only
“criminal desperation and total disregard for the judiciary” made Damagum proceed with the convention. “The court rulings stopping the convention are clear and unambiguous, so there was no confusion,” he added.
Osadolor refused to recognise the convention, describing it as a mere gathering and “an early Christmas party.”
He noted that desperation, recklessness, and arrogance were to blame for the Ibadan convention.
“I believe that they are adults and are well-informed, and they know the implications of indulging in an exercise that is a nullity in the eyes of the law. But I am aware that what they did is a mark of desperation. It is a face-saving move and false hope among their followers.
“The truth is this: the host of the gathering knows deep in his heart that it was an early Christmas party hosted in Ibadan, and not a PDP convention. Two competent courts had given clear injunctions as to the status of the gathering. I wonder what their desperation is all about, but I think it borders on arrogance and recklessness — arrogance that has brought us no good to this point,” he said.
Osadolor maintained that all decisions taken at the convention amounted to an exercise in futility, insisting that it had no legal foundation.
While explaining why the Damagum-led NWC proceeded with the convention despite two subsisting court orders, the South-West Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Kamorudeen Ajisafe, said the matter was purely political and should not have been entertained by the courts in the first instance.
He argued that the rulings stopping the convention were likely to be dismissed by higher courts, which was why the exercise had to hold.
“This is a pure political matter, and the Supreme Court has been clear on the principle that political questions — particularly internal party affairs — are generally non-justiciable. The court shouldn’t have entertained the matter in the first place. That aside, the Oyo State High Court that granted approval for the convention has jurisdiction over the matter. It is an issue of coordinate jurisdiction. When there are conflicting court orders, they are considered persuasive, not binding on the parties. It is now the duty of a higher court to resolve the discrepancies and provide clarity on the matter because conflicting judgments can create uncertainty and inconsistency in the application of the law.
“Those people (Wike bloc) wanted to play smart on us, but we didn’t allow that to happen. That is why we held the convention. We had even appealed the rulings stopping the convention and also sought a stay of execution.
“The convention has produced a new leadership, and the decision we took is binding on all members of the party. Let me restate that the conflicting judgments are no longer binding; they are persuasive, especially when another court of coordinate jurisdiction granted a contrary ruling allowing us to proceed with the convention.
“We followed all necessary procedures and processes for the convention. We wrote INEC, giving it the 21-day statutory notice required by law. Fourteen members of the PDP NWC, including the national chairman, supported the convention, while only four members were against it. So, we have the majority, and the convention outcome is binding on every member of the party.”
Similarly, Lamido’s spokesperson, Mansur Hassan, believes the convention will be nullified, describing it as a “shenanigan.” Hassan said the Damagum faction should have suspended it and allowed the constitution of a caretaker committee to resolve the crises in the party.
He stated, “The court will do the needful at the appropriate time since they decided to disobey the court order and they went ahead with the convention. They will pay for it in the end. The court will nullify the convention, that is sure.
“The caretaker committee should have been put in place with the needful reconciliation, giving access and an enabling environment for anybody to contest. The situation of the PDP now requires carrying everybody along. You need to fully reconcile and restore people’s confidence and hope in the party. This sounds very easy and better instead of wasting your time and resources on a convention, only for the court to say it is null and void. What is the essence of doing that?”
INEC absence at the convention
According to Hassan, INEC’s absence at the convention is a sign that the gathering wasn’t approved by the commission and that it was illegal.
“We served INEC the court order on Friday (a day to the convention), and that was why it didn’t attend the illegal gathering. It is a nullity,” he said.
But Ajisafe said INEC’s attendance was not mandatory, saying only the 21-day notification was mandatory.
He said, “What is mandatory is the 21-day notice of the convention which was done via a letter written by both Damagum and Anyanwu. The law says INEC may attend the convention, while it says ‘21-day notice shall be communicated’ to the commission for the convention. We have satisfied all that needs to be satisfied.”
Violence, tear gas at PDP secretariat
However, the convention crisis climaxed into violence on Tuesday when the Turaki-led new NWC, Governors Seyi Makinde (Oyo) and Bala Mohammed (Bauchi) approached the PDP National Secretariat for a National Executive Council meeting.
Their attempt to enter the building immediately triggered confrontation, as the Wike bloc, which had already gained control of the premises earlier in the day, blocked access and insisted the rival faction had no legitimacy.
The resulting standoff quickly spiralled into unrest, as policemen at the secretariat fired teargas to disperse party members, creating a chaotic atmosphere around the secretariat. Both Makinde and Mohammed were seen wiping their faces with handkerchiefs as the teargas spread. In another moment that underscored the volatility, an unidentified man was seen assaulting members being chased out of the NEC hall.
But despite the confrontation, Turaki, Makinde and Mohammed eventually gained entry into the national chairman’s office, while the Wike bloc went elsewhere to announce the expulsion of the trio.
By Wednesday morning, police returned to the secretariat to seal it off with barbed wire, effectively shutting down the premises. Security sources said the action was taken to prevent Turaki’s faction from holding the rescheduled NEC meeting.
Ajisafe, while commenting on the chaos, described the situation as shameful and an attempt by a “minority” to force themselves on the majority.
“They (Wike faction) have no shame. It was a shameful incident. How can a minority want to lord themselves over the majority? The situation on ground is 14 against four. We are 14 on our side while the Wike people are just four, including Anyanwu.
“That’s why people are blaming INEC now for their silence. They are the ones causing problems. How can you be silent on the suspension of Anyanwu and others? INEC should have come up with their position on the matter in line with the party constitution.”
But Osadolor blamed Makinde and Muhammed for the violence. “In all my life, I have never thought that a day would come when the spiritual/sacred home of the PDP, the Wadata Plaza, would be so violated the way the two governors decided to violate it. It doesn’t speak well of our character and our democratic credentials before Nigerians. It’s a complete disaster and a show of shame,” he said.
