2023: Leadership crisis rocks PDP NWC

The leadership crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) took a new dimension yesterday as some “dissident” members of the National Working Committee (NWC) purportedly held a meeting during which they asked the National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus to resign.

The move came the same day some youths staged a protest at the party’s National Secretariat, also demanding the resignation of Secondus, accusing him of polarising the party.

The protesters, believed to be working in concert with the aggrieved members of the NWC, claimed Secondus was responsible for the recent defection of three PDP governors and some members of the National Assembly to the ruling party. But Secondus has said he will not resign as the tenure of his administration will not elapse until December.

The PDP boss also argued that any thought of resignation would be premature until those championing the campaign were able to present convincing reasons and evidence that he was guilty of the charges.

In a short message released by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Ike Abonyi, the National Chairman said that so far, nothing warranted his resignation from the chairmanship position.

He said that the tiny minority calling for his resignation should come clean and tell party members across the country his offence why he should resign.

Secondus said he will remain focussed and committed to the ideals of the party which he swore to protect and defend upon his election 44 months ago. In recent weeks, PDP, the main opposition party in the country, has witnessed some internal rumblings as various interest groups contest for space and relevance in a battle for the soul of the party.

The contests are apparently preliminary battles over which group takes charge of the party structure ahead of the National Convention and the 2023 election.

The Board of Trustees (BoT) of the PDP, which met last Thursday, had advised members to maintain peace until a committee set up to investigate the crisis had deliberated on the raging controversies.

The committee is expected to meet today. In apparent defiance of that advice, some aggrieved members of the NWC moved yesterday to force Secondus and those loyal to him to step down to pave the way for an interim administration to lead the party.

In an unsigned statement made available to journalists, the group claimed that nine members of the NWC met on Sunday and resolved that Secondus should resign. Secondus was not at the said meeting and the party’s NWC is composed of 18 members.

According to the group, the meeting was convened as a follow up to the August 3 meeting to deliberate on the crisis in the party.

“The meeting held and extensively deliberated, nine members of the National working committee (NWC) agreed that the National Chairman Prince Uche Secondus has grossly mismanaged the party, highly incompetent, factionalised the party and has lost the confidence of members of the party. “The matter of his resignation was put to vote,

six members voted that he should resign and three members abstained from voting.

“Therefore the meeting resolved to forward the resolution taken on the 8th day of August to the Governors’ Forum, the BoT, the National Assembly caucus of both House of Reps and the Senate.

“We call on all members of the party to remain calm as the party leadership is working tirelessly to resolve the leadership crisis,” the statement read. Those who voted were Senator Suleiman Nazif, Deputy National chairman (North); Alhaji Mai Adamu Mustapher, National Auditor; Sunday Udeh-Okoye (National Youth Leader); Ambassador Taofiq Arapaja, National Vice Chairman (South West); Chief Dan Orbih National Vice Chairman (South-South); and Chief Ali Odefa National Vice Chairman (South East). Senator Umar Ibrahim Tsauri, National Secretary; Abdullahi Maibasira, National Financial Secretary and Chief Theophilus Dakas, National Vice Chairman (North Central), though present at the meeting, abstained from voting.

However, National Legal Adviser, Emmanuel Enoidem said that there is no provision in the party’s constitution that gives such powers “to any organ, individuals or group of persons to ask an officer of the party to resign for any reason whatsoever.”

Enoidem, citing Section 29 (3) of the PDP constitution, said only the National Chairman or 2/3 members of the NWC can validly convene a meeting of the NWC.

According to him: “Subsection (4) provides for 2/3 members of NWC to form a quorum for a meeting of the NWC.

“As a bona fide member of the NWC, to the best of my knowledge, I am not aware of any meeting of NWC summoned by the National Chairman or in the manner provided aforesaid.

“It is therefore of grave concern, and indeed, very sad to read the above position purportedly taken by some distinguished members of NWC in utter disdain and violation of clear extant provisions of our constitution.”

He said that Sections 45(1) and 47 (5) of the PDP constitution stipulates that resignation of any officer of the party at any level is a personal decision, arguing that there is no provision in the constitution that gives any organ powers to force any officer to resign.

“The powers to remove any member of the NWC and indeed any national officer is reserved in the National Convention which is due for December 2021,”

Enoidem advised. Meanwhile, members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the House of Representatives have dissociated themselves from news reports purporting that they were part of an online meeting of the PDP Caucus in the House where a decision was taken to sack the current leadership of the party.

Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, who made the denial on behalf of his colleagues, said that if such a meeting was held, it was without the knowledge of the leadership of the Minority Caucus, and therefore in breach of established procedure.

According to Elumelu, the Caucus was rather, working in concert with relevant organs of the party to ensure quick resolution of the current challenges that will be in the overall interest of the party and Nigerians.

He appealed to all party faithful, particularly PDP members in the House of Representatives, to exercise caution and patience as the party addresses the present leadership challenges.

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