• Saraki, Lamido, Makarfi, others present
•ADC says APC with 31 govs still jittery
By Sarah NEGEDU
The faction of the Nyesom Wike-backed Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, held their national convention in Abuja on Sunday at the Velodrome of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium.
Wike, the minister of the FCT, led the delegates to affirm the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led national caretaker committee as the substantive national working committee, NWC, of the party.
To give legal backing to the convention, officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, led by Prof. Sani Adams, SAN were present.
In a statement on his X handle, Lere Olayinka, media aide to the FCT Minister, tweetd, “INEC is represented here by two National Commissioners, Prof Sani Adams (SAN), and Dr Ken Ukeagu.
“Also here are Director EPM, Joan Arabs, Director Legal, Rakiya Nauzo and Director Drafting and Clearance, Nkechi Abuh. Others are; Mustapha Abubakar, Deputy Director Party Legal and Liaison, Mas’ud Hassan, Rakiya Dattijo, Umar Hassan and Babangida Shanu.”
Though the Turaki-led faction had approached the Supreme Court ahead of the controversial convention, Wike had insisted that it would hold as scheduled, noting that efforts would be made to reconcile aggrieved members of the party after the convention.
Some of the party’s heavyweights in attendance include former Senate President Bukola Saraki, former governors of Benue and Jigawa, Smauel Ortom and Sule Lamido, former Governor of Ekiti, Ayo Fayose, Senate Minority Leader, Abba Moro, House Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda, former Deputy Speaker, House of Reps, Chibudom Nwuche, amongst others.
Speaking at the convention, Wike expressed the confidence that the party will field candidates in the 2027 elections, pointing out that INEC officials were present.
The minister also took a swipe at those who have left the party, saying that they lack leadership traits and vowed that the party will recover its mandates from them.
ADC says APC with 31 govs jittery
In another development, the African Democratic Congress, ADC, has lambasted the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, over its alleged nervousness ahead the 2027 general elections.
ADC stated that the ruling APC remained jittery despite controlling 31 states and commanding about 90 percent of the members in the National Assembly.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, stated this during a television interview where he questioned the APC’s “growing anxiety” ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said the ruling party’s dominance across political structures should ordinarily translate into confidence, but noted that the reverse appears to be the case.
“Why is a party with 31 governors and about 90 percent of the national assembly still panicking? Why are they still trying to destabilise other opposition parties?” he asked.
Abdullahi argued that the APC’s posture suggests a lack of confidence in its electoral prospects, particularly in the event of a free and fair contest.
“In any free and fair election in Nigeria today, there’s no way APC will win. They should be preparing for Tinubu’s win given their overwhelming governance. But they are unsettled because they know in a free and fair election, there is no way they can win. Nigerians are tired of them”, he said.
He further described the APC as heavily dependent on President Bola Tinubu, warning that the party could struggle to remain cohesive after his tenure.
“If you take power out of APC, APC is actually nothing. I know the party well. Post Tinubu, they will unravel quickly, even they would be surprised. He is the glue holding the party together”, he stated.
