Drama as Thugs Disrupt PDP BoT Meeting

  • Ude Okoye dragged out of meeting
  • Damagum promises NEC meeting in February , blames party leaders for escalating crisis

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

Fight broke out at the national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Wednesday over the presence of the two claimants to its national secretary position.

The incident happened in the ongoing meeting of the Board of Trustees (BoT), with Senator Sam Anyanwu and his co-claimant to the national secretary post, Sunday Ude-Okoye, in attendance.

However, after the opening ceremony, an aide to Anyanwu confronted Ude-Okoye and pushed him out of the hall.

His attempt to get back in resulted in fisticuffs with the Board chairman and former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara, trying to intervene with little success.

However, individuals who were said to have accompanied Ude-Okoye, responded, forcing the gate open in an attempt to bring him back into the hall.

The his supporters jumped the PDP fence, But the they were chased out by a combined team of mobile police men and a detachment of soldiers.

Over five trucks of Policemen were mobilised to the scene.

The cameraman of the Silverbird Television and the Arise TV reporter, Mary China, were forced to delete their recordings.

Trouble started when Okoye forced himself into the hall where the BOT meeting was ongoing. He insisted that the suspected thugs were his guests. At this point, that some of them jumped the fence and forced their way into the meeting hall, holding the BoT meeting hostage for some minutes till the Commissioner of Police, Tunji Disu mobilised his men to chase them away.

The meeting was ongoing with Ambassador Iliya Damagum, Acting National Chairman, and Anyanwu seated before the arrival of Ude-Okoye.

The moment Udu-Okoye got into the hall, Senator Adolphus Wabara, BoT Chairman, was delivering a speech.

Udu-Okoye waited for the BoT Chairman to finish his speech before going round to greet those on the high table, excluding his rival, Anyanwu.

However, Udu-Okoye was later forced out of the meeting by suspected thugs, leading to altercation. It was around this time that journalists were asked to vacate the hall for a closed door session.

But Udu-Okoye was seen shouting and urging his supporters to prevent his ejection.

He later went to the gate, lamenting injustice as Anyanwu’s men were allowed into the Secretariat but his own supporters were denied access.

As at the time of filing this report, Ude-Okoye was still outside while the meeting was ongoing.

Earlier before the fracas, the acting national chairman, Amb Iliya Damagum in his opening speech promised the BoT members that the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting will take place in February as promised last year when the PDP governors met in Jos.

He acknowledged that there was crisis within the party. He blamed the crisis in the party on those he described as leaders whom he said were misleading the members with their various meetings.

According to Damagum, ”I want to say this with the highest sense of responsibility, part of this crisis that you see today within the NWC, is propelled by our leaders that are supposed to unite us.

”It’s very unfortunate, I would say it the way it is, where people are called, we all know the working of NWC, some of you here have been NWC members. I’ll be sitting down at the chairman only to see my members called by certain leaders to visit certain places, without my knowledge. Each one of you, if you are the chairman, will find it difficult. And I want to use this opportunity to caution us, caution our leaders.

”You may have ambition, but you don’t ride on a dead horse to reach your destination. If you create crisis simply to further your ambition, you may get what you want, but your dream will not be realized, because by that time, you have injured the horse you are going to ride to that destination.

”And as the conscience of this party, some of us are also complicit. We should look inwards, search our conscience. This party is dear to all of us, it is the only thing we have. The hope of Nigerians today is on this party, so we should sheath our swords, work towards uniting ourselves so that we’ll have a credible vehicle that can challenge what is bedeviling us

”At the last meeting we had with the governor, we all agreed we’ll have NEC. I want to assure you that we’ll do everything possible to have this NEC in this February. You are all aware we’ve started the process of zonal congresses.

”Even at that, I enjoin our leaders to also be mindful of doing anything that can mar these congresses. It’s very important to sound this note because whatever we do, is the structure you are building to hold what you have at your hand. Like you said, we are supposed to bring credible people. We’ve had congresses recently about almost 29 state. We have problems in few states. I think we are getting there.”, Damagum stated

In his opening speech, the chairman of the PDP BoT meeting, Senator Adolphus Wabara said, ”This meeting comes at a time when the unity, focus and direction and ideals of our great Party are being tested in ways that call for reflection and decisive action.

”Primarily, let me express my profound disappointment over the crises currently rocking the leadership of the National Working Committee (NWC). As elder statesmen and women; leaders who hold the trust of the generality of our party members and the public, it is disheartening that these issues have not been resolved. The failure to resolve these internal conflicts undermines the strength and credibility of our party.

” It is therefore imperative that the NWC rises above personal interests and places the survival and progress of our great party above all other considerations. In the light of these challenges, I must emphasize the urgent need for a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting. I again urge the NWC to honour its words and convene the NEC meeting as scheduled in February 2025. It is pertinent to stress that party members across the country are in earnest expectation that the NEC meeting will hold this February.

”The NEC remains the highest decision-making body of our party, and it is crucial that we convene without further delay to address these pressing concerns. The NEC meeting will serve as a platform to reaffirm our shared commitment to the unity, discipline, and ideals that bind us together as members of the PDP.

”As we prepare to conduct our Zonal Congresses, may I remind us all of the critical importance of electing credible leaders at every level of our party’s structure. These leaders will serve as the face and voice of the PDP, and it is essential that they possess the vision, integrity, and capacity to steer the affairs of the party effectively. Let us ensure that the processes are free, fair, and transparent, so that the outcome reflects the collective will of our members.

”Despite the challenges we face, let me reiterate that the PDP remains the hope of Nigerians. Our nation has endured years of suffering under the poor policies and governance of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Nigerians are looking to us as a beacon of hope, and we cannot afford to let them down. We must rebuild trust and offer a credible alternative that prioritizes the welfare of the people.

”I therefore call on every one of us to set aside personal differences and work collectively to strengthen the PDP. This party has weathered storms before, and I have no doubt that we will emerge stronger, more united, and ready to fulfill our historic mission of leading Nigeria to a brighter future.”, Wabara stated.

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