- Ologunagba speaking for himself, arbitrarily using NWC name, Deputy spokesman alleges
A fresh storm is raging in the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over decisions purportedly taken by it recently.
Such decisions attributed to the NWC by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, include the denial of Senator Samuel Anyanwu as National Secretary of the party; the recognition of loyalists of Rivers State governor Siminalayi Fubara as executive members of the PDP in the state ;and the nullification of the expulsion of House of Representatives member, Ikenga Ugochinyere by his ward and Imo state party leaders.
Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Alhaji Ibrahim Abdullahi, told reporters in Abuja yesterday that there was no basis for Ologunagba’s statements on the issues as the NWC has not met since September 2024 to discuss any of them.
Abdullahi ,who claimed to be speaking at the behest of PDP’s acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Ilyas Damagum and other PDP NWC members, said there was no time the NWC discussed or approved any decision to nullify the expulsion of Ugochinyere by his ward and Imo state party leaders.
He said there was also no legal basis for the NWC to oppose the continued stay in office of Anyanwu as National Secretary
Abdullahi said the PDP was obliged to obey the Court of Appeal order restraining the party from appointing any person as acting National Secretary in place of Sen. Samuel Anyanwu.
Abdullahi said in the last few days, PDP had been issued with two court orders surrounding the authentic national secretary of the party.
He said that on Wednesday, PDP was served with an order of interim injunction issued by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Maitama, in a suit marked: CV/64/2025.
Abdullahi said that the order, in the suit filed by Imo PDP Chairman, Austine Nwachukwu, through his counsel, Clement Mue, restrained the party from recognising the PDP Deputy National Secretary, Setonji Koshoedo, as the substantive national secretary.
He said that PDP was, on Thursday, also served with a stay of execution order by the Court of Appeal (Abuja division) in an appeal No. CA/E/24/2024 on a judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal, Enugu Division, on Dec. 20, 2024.
Abdullahi said that the order came with an injunction restraining PDP or its agents from enforcing or giving effect to the judgment of the appellate court, pending the hearing and determination of the appeal filed at the Supreme Court.
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According to him, the court, in its ruling on the ex parte application, restrained PDP and its principal officers from removing Anyanwu from office, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice fixed for Jan. 28.
He said that the court also restrained PDP, its leaders, Koshoedo or any other person from acting as the party’s national secretary.
Abdullahi added that the deputy national secretary was equally restrained from issuing any notice of meeting of the National Executive Committee and National Working Committee, signing any document or performing any function except on the directive of Anyanwu or in his absence.
“Accordingly, we are obliged, as a law-abiding party, to respect the order of the court.
“We will also send a legal representation to defend the party in the suit when the motion on notice comes up on Jan. 8 and Feb. 5 for hearing on the originating summons,” he said.
Abdullahi said that Anyanwu remained the substantive national secretary until the determination of the appeal before the Supreme Court.
“Where there is an appeal, it is only behoves on the appellant to wait until the determination of the appeal. That is the position of law,” he said.
Abdullahi appealed to all PDP members to be law-abiding in waiting for the final position of the court on the matter.
Asked why he was doing the news briefing when PDP had said Ologunagba remains the substantive National Publicity Secretary, Abudllahi said he enjoyed the same power with Ologunagba to speak for the party.
He said Ologunagba’s claim that the PDP NWC had recognized a loyalist of Governor Fubara as chairman of the party in Rivers State was a mere ruse.
His words: “In the manner that my colleague (Debo Ologunagba) has demonstrated lately, it’s becoming very glaring and clear that the party is having discomfort, as it were, with some of his disposition lately; he seems to have been speaking from both sides of his mouth.
“Only yesterday, I issued, on the directive of the National Chairman, a disclaimer on the position of the party, where he spoke and issued a statement that the party, the NWC, sat and accepted wholly but the NWC did not accept the judgment in River State recognizing the Ewor-led exco; that is not true, the NWC has not sat since September last year and this is subject to your verification.
“So, I wonder where he will now say the NWC sat and adopted wholly, or accepted the verdict, recognizing the Ewor-led state exco for River State PDP; not only that, he recently spoke about the judgment in Imo State, where a court affirmed the expulsion of Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere from the PDP; even before the normal processes were adhered to, which is that the information from the ward where he was expelled or suspended, transmitted to the LG, the local court, and then to the NWC.
“Even before this was done, Debo went to the press by issuing a statement that Ugochinyere was not expelled; a National Publicity Secretary does not enjoy such powers, he cannot speak for the NWC without clearance with the NWC.
“That is not the position of law; that is not expected of him as a lawyer to so do.
“So, we have now come to a level where the sentiment that he has allowed to becloud his reasoning is beginning to take a toll on his job.
“The same thing that happened in the neighboring state of Ebonyi, where even though on appeal, the Zonal Chairman was said to also have been suspended and expelled and this was equally affirmed by the court; before that decision was deliberated on by the NWC, Debo went and said it was not the position of the NWC.
“It is either that the NWC will have to sit or the PDP chairman will have to give a directive but he ( Debo Ologunagba) never said, like I did yesterday in my press release, that he was directed.
“Debo will never tell you ‘I was directed to so do; he would use his whims and caprice but you are not at liberty to use your personal discretion when speaking for a party where there is constituted authority.”
A former national youth leader of PDP, Sunday Ude-Okoye, is laying claim to the position of national secretary based on a Court of Appeal ruling which sacked Anyanwu from office.
Ude-Okoye declared his assumption of office following the ruling.
Observers said yesterday that the latest standoff is a continuation of the fight for the soul of the party by supporters of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike ahead of the 2027 elections.
