…Court sets date for Secretary tussle hearing
The leadership crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has further intensified following a strong rebuttal from the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) against recent actions by the Acting National Chairman, Amb. Umar Damagum, amid an ongoing legal tussle over the position of National Secretary.
The BoT, in a statement issued on Wednesday and signed by its chairman, Senator Adolphus Wabara, insisted that the 100th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the party will hold as scheduled on Monday, June 30, 2025, dismissing Damagum’s earlier announcement of its cancellation as unconstitutional and lacking in authority.
The advisory body also rejected the reinstatement of Senator Samuel Anyanwu as the PDP’s National Secretary, stressing that the Deputy National Secretary, Arc. Setonji Koshoedo, remains the Acting National Secretary until any contrary decision is formally adopted by the appropriate organ of the party.
“The pronouncements by the Acting National Chairman are null, void and of no effect”, the BoT stated, citing violations of the party’s constitution and NEC resolutions. “It is not within the remit or authority of the Acting National Chairman to override a collective decision of NEC. Such conduct amounts to an affront to the constitutional authority of NEC and the collective will of our party”.
The BoT noted that the resolution to hold the 100th NEC meeting was taken at the 99th NEC meeting held on May 27, 2025, and that only the NEC itself has the power to change such a decision. It affirmed that Koshoedo’s appointment as Acting National Secretary by the National Working Committee (NWC) remains valid.
This comes amid a widening division within the PDP’s NQC, with members split between those supporting Damagum’s pronouncements and those backing the BoT’s stance. The conflict has also exposed cracks within the PDP Governors Forum, further complicating efforts to maintain party unity ahead of key electoral cycles.
Meanwhile, the legal battle over the authentic National Secretary of the PDP is also unfolding in court. Yesterday, the Federal High Court in Abuja scheduled September 22 for the hearing of a suit filed by Senator Anyanwu, who is challenging his removal and seeking to assert his claim to the position.
Anyanwu, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/254/2025, is seeking an order to restrain INEC from accepting any correspondence from the PDP not signed by him, and to bar Damagum from submitting any official communication to INEC without his countersignature. Though the court declined to grant the interim reliefs via an ex-parte application, it has allowed additional parties, including PDP chieftains Udeh-Okoye, Ali Odela, and Setonji Koshoedo, to be joined in the suit.
The BoT, however, cautioned that the party’s institutional integrity must not be compromised for individual ambition. “As the conscience of the party, we cannot stand idly by and watch impunity and unilateralism destroy our structures,” the statement read. “All members are advised to uphold the supremacy of the PDP Constitution and resist attempts to plunge the party into avoidable crisis.”
As both political and legal battles intensify, the PDP faces a critical test of cohesion and constitutional order in the weeks ahead.
