The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party escalated on Saturday following the expulsion of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and 10 other high-ranking leaders over alleged anti-party activities.
The decision was taken at the PDP’s 20th National Convention at the main bowl of the Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
Those also expelled include a former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose; the party’s National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu; the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade; and Austin Nwachukwu.
Others are the factional chairman of the party, Mohammed Abdulrahman; Senator Mao Ohuabunwa; Austine Nwachukwu; Abraham Amah; George Turner; and Chief Dan Orbih.
A motion for the expulsion was moved by the former National Vice Chairman of the party (South), Chief Olabode George, and seconded by the Bauchi PDP Chairman, Samaila Burga, before its eventual adoption by the party’s delegates.
At the convention, the delegates also unanimously confirmed Umaru Damagum as the substantive National Chairman of the party.
The convention sparked divisions among the governors loyal to Damagum, as two of them—Governor Umaru Fintiri of Adamawa State, who chaired the National Organising Committee of the convention, and the Governor of Plateau State, Caleb Mutfwang—dissociated themselves from Wike’s expulsion.
The battle before convention
The PDP has been engulfed in crises in recent months, with factions loyal to Wike and Damagum clashing over control of the party’s structure.
This culminated in a bitter confrontation before the convention.
Ahead of the convention, former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, approached the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking justice after being denied the opportunity to purchase the PDP national chairmanship nomination form.
On Friday, Justice Peter Lifu ordered the party to suspend the convention.
He also restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission from supervising, monitoring, or recognising any convention conducted by the PDP that did not include Lamido as a contestant.
Justice Lifu held that evidence before the court showed that Lamido had been denied the opportunity to obtain a nomination form to contest for the position of National Chairman.
Recall that on Tuesday, November 11, 2025, Justice Lifu delivered a similar ruling restraining the PDP from holding the convention, which was intended to elect new national officers to lead the party.
Lamido, through his counsel, Jephthah Njikonye, SAN, had filed an ex parte motion seeking an interim injunction to halt the convention pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.
In his ruling, Justice Lifu held that the plaintiff’s application had merit and consequently restrained the PDP from convening the event until the substantive matter before the court was resolved.
He noted that there was no reason to depart from an earlier ruling by Justice James Omotosho of the same court on October 31, 2025, which similarly halted the convention.
However, in a conflicting order, the Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan on November 3 permitted the PDP to proceed with the convention.
Justice Ladiran Akintola, ruling on an ex parte application filed by an Oyo PDP member, Mr Folahan Adelabi, directed INEC to attend and monitor the convention for the election of new national officers.
The Damagum camp went ahead with the programme, claiming no knowledge of Justice Lifu’s Friday order.
Wike, others expelled over anti-party activities— PDP
Announcing the expulsion of Wike and other high-profile members via X on Saturday, the PDP said the decision was ratified by the majority of delegates at the convention.
The party explained that the move underscored its commitment to eradicating internal divisions and anti-party conduct that have hindered its progress.
Citing Articles 10(6) and 58(1)(b), (c), (f), (i), (j), (l), as well as 59(1)(g) of its 2017 Constitution (as amended), the PDP argued that the National Convention remains supreme in all matters relating to the party, including issues of discipline involving its officers and members.
Speaking with DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS after the announcement, the South-West PDP Chairman, Kamorudeen Ajisafe, said the expulsion was long overdue.
“Wike and others were suspended for anti-party activities,” Ajisafe said.
“They wanted to destroy the party, and we cannot allow that to happen.”
He, however, clarified that Lamido was not included in the expulsion despite his series of court moves to stop the convention.
“Lamido isn’t in Wike’s category. He is a respected PDP leader,” Ajisafe stated.
“He is just angry that he wasn’t allowed to purchase the nomination form to contest the PDP chairmanship, as he showed interest after the closure of the timeframe for such. We will resolve issues with him.”
The Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, dismissed the convention as mere drama.
Olayinka, via X, argued that no one should take the organisers seriously.
“They went to Ibadan to start dirty December in November. When people decide to start their own dirty December in November, one can’t but ignore whatever comes out of their mouths,” he wrote.
“They gathered in Ibadan to do social party, enjoyed themselves and got intoxicated. They are free to say anything.”
Govs revolt against Wike’s expulsion
Governor Fintiri dissociated himself from Wike’s expulsion.
Fintiri, while delivering his speech at the convention ground, said the absence of INEC officials at the event also necessitated his withdrawal from the exercise.
“With the absence of INEC and the various litigations for and against this convention, it is not within my prerogative to continue with this exercise. I leave the convention delegates to decide,” Fintiri said.
The Adamawa governor further clarified his position in a statement shared on his verified X handle (@AhmaduUmaruFintiri).
He described Wike’s expulsion as an action against the interest of the party and warned that it could plunge the PDP into an unending crisis.
Fintiri urged party members to work towards unity and the reconciliation of aggrieved members.
He noted that his position was informed by the desire for peace and stability within the party.
“I urge all stakeholders to work towards healing the divisions within the party and to strive for unity and cohesion. As a party man, I am committed to supporting efforts that promote peace, stability, and progress within the PDP,” he wrote.
The Plateau State governor, Mutfwang, also distanced himself from the disputed expulsion, arguing that the issue was neither discussed at the PDP Governors’ Forum nor at the party’s National Executive Council before it was presented.
He maintained that the proposal did not represent his position on the matter.
The governor’s stance was contained in a statement signed by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Gyang Bere.
Mutfwang further observed that expelling party leaders at such a critical time was not a strategic approach to addressing the internal challenges facing the PDP.
He reiterated the need for unity, dialogue, and collective effort in rebuilding and repositioning the party.
Other expelled leaders hit back
Two other party leaders who were expelled, Amah and Turner, also kicked against the party’s move, describing it as unlawful, procedurally defective, and a violation of subsisting court orders.
Speaking in an interview with DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS, Amah, the Chairman of the PDP in Abia State, said the convention was “an aberration” in view of ongoing litigation.
“We have a matter in court and it has moved to the Appeal Court. So, it is against the spirit of the law and the constitution for them to go ahead to do what they had done. We are not part of what they have done,” he said.
Responding to questions on whether Abia delegates were present at the gathering, Amah stated that participation was limited.
He said, “It is a game of democracy. We have 17 local governments; four chairmen are there while 13 are not. We have 14 members of the state working committee; only five are there. Some people went there because of the money they want to collect.”
Amah also faulted the dissolution of the Abia and Imo PDP executives at the event, arguing that those whose structures were dissolved could not validly participate.
“They went ahead to dissolve Abia and Imo executives, and now they are calling them to come and vote, which is a blunder. By dissolving the state, they don’t have the right to vote,” he added.
Turner, the Secretary of the PDP in the South-South Zone, also dismissed the gathering as a social event.
He said, “There is no PDP convention anywhere. You heard the chairman of the social gathering in Ibadan, Fintiri, where he announced that INEC was not there. So, it is not a convention of the PDP. When the PDP is ready with their convention, everybody will know. For now, it is good riddance to bad rubbish.”
In the same vein, the acting Publicity Secretary of the South-South PDP, Enyinnaya Appolos, in a statement to DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS, described the event as “ill-fated” and held “in clear defiance of due process and judicial pronouncements.”
He said it was “troubling” that the organisers ignored two subsisting Federal High Court judgments and relied instead on “an ineffectual ex parte order which, in law and in fact, cannot override valid and extant court decisions.”
Appolos also faulted the absence of INEC, saying that alone rendered the exercise “procedurally defective and legally unsustainable.”
He noted that the purported convention proceeded despite unresolved state congresses and explicit court orders barring such a gathering.
“It is evident that every business purportedly transacted at this gathering cannot stand the test of time, nor withstand judicial scrutiny,” he said.
He urged party members to remain calm as the matter progressed to the Court of Appeal.
Govs Adeleke, Fubara, Agbu may dump PDP
Meanwhile, the Governors of Rivers, Osun, and Taraba states—Siminalayi Fubara, Ademola Adeleke, and Cephas Agbu—shunned the convention on Saturday.
The Deputy National Youth Leader of the party, Timothy Osadolor, said it was a signal that they could exit the party.
The National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Ajibola Basiru, already said Kefas would join the party on Wednesday, November 19.
Adeleke and Fubara are also said to be plotting escape from the PDP.
Speaking with DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS, Osadolor said, “We should not blame Governor Adeleke and others who are not in Ibadan if they are on their way out of the party.
“Adeleke’s colleagues in Ibadan are hell-bent on frustrating his second-term bid, trying to destroy the party on whose platform they were all elected.
“These people, especially the governors, should have saved themselves this monumental embarrassment that they are facing in Ibadan.”
Osadolor dismissed the gathering in Ibadan as void, insisting that it carried no legal weight.
He said, “In the eyes of the law, it is a complete nullity. There is no INEC presence at the venue of the so-called convention. So, when they finish this their Christmas party, will they write a list and send to INEC that the court told them not to monitor the process?
“How will they compel INEC to recognise the cheerleaders they will handpick in Ibadan? They should apologise to those they lured to Ibadan and save themselves from shame. The governors who shunned the event are wise.”
PDP dissolves party structures in Enugu, Akwa Ibom, Rivers
Apart from Imo and Abia states, the PDP also dissolved all party structures in Enugu, Akwa Ibom, and Rivers states.
The dissolution was announced on Saturday at the convention.
The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, moved the motion for the convention to ratify and approve the elected executive committees of the party at various levels in states and zones where congresses had already been concluded.
The motion was seconded by the National Auditor and member of the PDP National Working Committee, Daniel Okechukwu.
Makinde said, “In the case of Imo, Abia, Enugu, Akwa Ibom, and Rivers, the convention hereby dissolves all party structures at the ward, local government, and state levels.
“The convention has authorised the publication of this decision to serve as official notice to the public.”
He explained that congresses were held across the country between 2024 and 2025 to elect party executives at the ward, local government, state, and geopolitical zone levels, including national ex-officio members.
Makinde maintained that the congresses were conducted substantially in compliance with the Electoral Act 2022, the PDP Constitution, and party guidelines.
He added that the National Executive Committee and the National Working Committee had approved the congresses and the officers elected through the process.
