PDP convention: Wike, Ortom, Fayose, others issue six-point demand to NWC

With the countdown to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national convention gathering momentum, some of the party’s influential figures have raised fresh concerns, issuing a six-point demand to the National Working Committee (NWC).

The demands were agreed upon at a high-level stakeholders’ meeting held on Monday night at the Abuja residence of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister and former Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike.

Others at the meeting included former Benue State governor Samuel Ortom; ex-Ekiti State governor Ayo Fayose; former Abia State governor Okezie Ikpeazu; and former Enugu State governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. Also in attendance was the PDP National Secretary, Senator Sam Anyanwu.

In a communiqué issued early Tuesday and signed by Ortom on behalf of the group, the stakeholders warned that any convention held without addressing their concerns would be considered invalid, as “legitimate members of the party would be disenfranchised.”

The six demands

The PDP stakeholders insisted that:

1. Fresh congresses must be conducted in Ebonyi and Anambra States, in compliance with subsisting court judgments.

2. A new South-East Zonal Congress must be urgently organised.

3. The outcome of the South-South Congress in Calabar, already upheld by the courts, must be respected.

4. PDP should immediately conduct the Ekiti LGA congresses, in line with judicial pronouncements.

5. There should be no micro-zoning of offices beyond the general zoning formula adopted by the National Executive Committee (NEC).

6. The national chairmanship position must remain in the North-Central, consistent with the zoning arrangement of the 2021 convention.

The leaders stressed that the PDP is at a “defining crossroads”, warning that sidelining valid members or disregarding judicial rulings would deepen divisions within the party.

“Unity cannot be built on disenfranchisement, exclusion, or the neglect of valid judicial pronouncements,” the communiqué stated, adding that only transparency and fairness would guarantee a credible convention.

The stakeholders cautioned that ignoring these resolutions could plunge the party into a deeper crisis.

“The PDP was built on the foundation of inclusivity, fairness, and justice. To reclaim its pride of place as Nigeria’s true opposition, the party must now rise above narrow interests and embrace collective responsibility,” they urged.

With the 2027 general elections looming large, the intervention by Wike, Ortom, Fayose, Ikpeazu, and Ugwuanyi underscores renewed pressure on the PDP to put its house in order and avoid further fragmentation.