The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has resolved its internal wrangling and reinstated Senator Samuel Anyanwu as its National Secretary.
This decision was announced by the party’s Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Iliya Damagum, during a press briefing held on Wednesday at the PDP National Secretariat in Abuja.
Damagum, who was flanked by Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, former Senate President Bukola Saraki, and other prominent party stakeholders, admitted that the decision to reinstate Anyanwu into the National Working Committee (NWC) was a tough one.
“It was a critical decision,” Damagum said. “Anyanwu is resuming as the National Secretary, that is why I said it was a critical decision. Like INEC said, they don’t have our notice, so what we will have on June 30th is an extended Caucus.”
He also announced the cancellation of the planned National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, stating: “We will have an expanded Caucus. At the next Caucus we will take a decision leading to a proper NEC.”
This development followed a closed-door meeting between PDP leaders and the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, held on Tuesday. Although no official statements were made to the press after the meeting, sources revealed that Yakubu urged the party to comply with the Supreme Court ruling regarding the national secretary position.
INEC also reportedly advised PDP leaders—including governors, NWC and Board of Trustees (BoT) members, as well as party-elected lawmakers—that it would only accept official correspondence signed by the party’s recognised national chairman and national secretary.
It was gathered that INEC had earlier rejected a notification letter for a scheduled NEC meeting because it was signed solely by Acting Chairman Umar Damagum, without the signature of the national secretary.
During the meeting, INEC officials refrained from naming anyone as the recognised secretary, telling party representatives that it was up to the PDP to determine its leadership, guided by the Supreme Court’s decision.
Following the session with INEC, PDP leaders convened at the Bauchi State Governor’s Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja, for further consultations on the party’s next steps.
The leadership tussle over the national secretary position began after Anyanwu emerged as the PDP candidate in the last Imo State governorship election. During his absence, the South-East Caucus of the party appointed Sunday Udeh-Okoye, a former National Youth Leader, as his replacement.
After losing the election, Anyanwu attempted to reclaim his position but was resisted by some stakeholders from the South-East, led by Deputy National Chairman (South-East), Chief Ali Odefa. This led to legal battles, culminating in a December 2024 Court of Appeal ruling in Enugu which affirmed Udeh-Okoye as national secretary.
Dissatisfied, Anyanwu appealed to the Supreme Court, which overturned the lower court’s ruling. However, the apex court added a crucial caveat—that the party remains supreme and should decide who holds its leadership positions.
Rather than settling the matter, the Supreme Court verdict escalated tensions within the party, as both factions interpreted the ruling in their favour.
In an effort to stabilise the situation, PDP governors earlier nominated Deputy National Secretary Setonji Koshoedo to serve in an acting capacity, pending the resolution of the leadership dispute.
With Wednesday’s announcement, the party appears to have made a definitive move to restore unity within its ranks—at least for now.
