By Staff writer, Nnamdi Amadi
Fresh controversy has erupted within the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) after rival factions accused each other of attempting to manipulate the party’s forthcoming national convention, a dispute that analysts say reflects a broader battle for control of the opposition ahead of the 2027 general elections. Supporters of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, claimed that a group aligned with several PDP governors and led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, was planning to use the courts to stop the March 29–30, 2026 national convention.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, the National Publicity Secretary of the Wike-backed National Caretaker Working Committee, Jungudo Mohammed, said the convention would go ahead as scheduled, insisting that court rulings had already settled the question of who currently has the authority to run the party.
He said both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal recognised the caretaker committee as the lawful leadership and warned that any attempt to obtain a fresh injunction to halt the convention would amount to an abuse of the judicial process.
Mohammed alleged that the Turaki-led group had approached a court in Ibadan to seek an order stopping the convention, despite ongoing reconciliation efforts within the party.
He maintained that the PDP leadership had repeatedly invited all aggrieved members for dialogue but said the rival faction refused to participate in meaningful discussions.
According to him, the party remains committed to unity, internal democracy and respect for the rule of law, but would not allow what he described as politically motivated actions to derail preparations for the convention.
Rival faction accuses Wike camp of intimidation. In response, the governors-backed camp rejected the allegations, accusing the Wike-aligned group of trying to intimidate other stakeholders and dominate the party structure ahead of future elections.
The faction’s spokesman, Ini Ememobong, said his group had already made concessions in the interest of reconciliation and insisted that the dispute should not be twisted to create the impression that they were working against the party.
He said all existing court rulings remain valid and urged members to ignore what he described as misleading claims about plans to sabotage the convention.
Convention seen as battle for control of party machinery Political observers say the dispute is less about the convention itself and more about control of the PDP’s national structure, which will play a key role in deciding the party’s strategy for the 2027 Nigerian general election.
Since the fallout from the 2023 Nigerian presidential election, the PDP has struggled to rebuild unity after internal divisions led to open disagreements between governors, former party leaders and allies of Wike, who later accepted a ministerial position in the government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressive Congress, APC.
The upcoming convention is expected to determine the composition of the party’s leadership and could shape the PDP’s ability to present a united front against the ruling APC in the next election cycle.
Analysts warn that if the current disputes are not resolved before the convention, the party risks entering the 2027 race divided, a situation that has weakened opposition parties in previous elections.
