THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will be holding its first National Executive Committee meeting (NEC) at the party’s headquarters, Wadata Plaza, after police unsealed the secretariat last week.
News Point Nigeria reports that the PDP secretariat was sealed in November last year after a violent clash between the Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee of the party and the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led caretaker committee, who were both laying claims to the party’s leadership.
However, an Appeal Court judgment in March invalidated the Ibadan convention that produced the Turaki-led PDP leadership, a judgment the Abdulrahman-led PDP, which is heavily backed by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, relied upon to conduct the Abuja convention.
The meeting today is expected to be attended by all members of NEC who are on the side of the Mohammed-led PDP, including the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, former Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, among others.
Following the recent reopening of the secretariat by the police, the Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee (NWC) accused the police of enabling what it described as an unlawful takeover of its national secretariat in Abuja by “APC apologists,” deepening the party’s protracted leadership crisis.
The opposition party alleged that security operatives “unsealed the National Secretariat of our party and aided its takeover and occupation by the agents of the Federal Government and APC apologists, masquerading as PDP members, despite a pending appeal.”
The PDP maintained that the police action undermined ongoing judicial processes, noting that the ruling by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court Abuja —upon which the police reportedly acted—had already been appealed.
“By their action, they have tampered with the res, and that can render the judgment of the Court of Appeal nugatory, when it is eventually given,” a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, said, describing the development as “most shameful.”
It further accused the police of partisanship, expressing disappointment in the leadership of the Force.
