ACTING National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Ilyas Umar Damagum, has refuted reports he is plotting to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
He attributed the reports to desperate and determined political foes, asserting he was not pursuing a secret deal towards defecting to the APC.
“It is my detractors,” Damagum asserted in a response to The Nation’s text message requesting clarifications over the alleged plans.
He was alleged to be secretly plotting to dump PDP once his tenure as acting chairman expires at the party’s national convention scheduled for August 28-30, 2025.
But in a subsequent statement by his Personal Assistant, Nuru Jos, Damagum ascribed his purported plan to defect to APC as the handiwork of some desperate political forces who lost out in the PDP’s recent North East zonal congress while their stooges also lost in Yobe PDP’s ward and local government congresses.
He alleged those behind the reports were not only seeking to tarnish his reputation but also aiming to discredit his leadership of the PDP and distract it from his ongoing efforts to actualise reconciliation and reposition the party.
The statement reads: “The attention of the Office of the Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), His Excellency, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum, has been drawn to a fake and malicious news item circulated by an obscure platform, alleging that the Acting National Chairman is considering defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“This baseless report, authored by faceless individuals, was clearly fashioned to smear and defame the person and leadership of Ambassador Damagum.
“To set the record straight, let the world know that all Ward, Local Government, and Zonal congresses conducted in Yobe State, including those in the North-East zone, were peaceful, successful, and widely conducted without rancour.
“Unfortunately, a few disgruntled individuals, unable to deliver or prove their relevance within the party, have resorted to cheap blackmail in a desperate attempt to sabotage the efforts of the hardworking Acting National Chairman.
“The smear campaign is being orchestrated by internal saboteurs who, failing to impose impunity and personal agenda, falsely accuse Ambassador Damagum of standing in their way; their displeasure stems from his principled stand against the arbitrary removal of elected officers and his refusal to yield to sectional interests.
“Let it be clearly stated: the PDP in Yobe State, under the able influence of Ambassador Damagum, remains strong, united, and healthy. He will continue to work diligently to stabilize and reposition the party from the grassroots in his home state and across the nation.
“Mischief-makers must desist from their divisive antics and instead support the reforms being led by Ambassador Damagum to reposition the PDP for a stronger outing in the 2027 general elections.”
The statement added: “He (Damagum) remains above petty politics and remains impartial in all internal party affairs. It is this sense of balance that has earned him the confidence and backing of the party’s stakeholders across the board, hence, Damagum will remain committed to the unity and reconciliation of our great party—the PDP.”
“If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s life, sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.”