PDP crisis: Damagum, PDP leaders meet INEC over national secretary dispute

Some governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and key members of the party’s leadership are currently in a closed-door meeting with the management of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), led by INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.

The main agenda of the meeting is the controversy surrounding the National Secretary of the party.

The high-level delegation, led by Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum, includes Governors Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau), Dauda Lawal (Zamfara), and the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed.

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Also in attendance at the meeting at the INEC Headquarters in Abuja, are former Senate President Bukola Saraki, former Governors Ahmad Makarfi and Seriake Dickson of Kaduna and Bayelsa states respectively, Senator Abba Moro and former PDP National Secretary, Senator Ben Obi, among others.

The meeting follows a letter from the commission, which rejected the party’s earlier notification to INEC about its 100th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting scheduled for June 30.

INEC had faulted the notice for being signed solely by the acting chairman, without the required co-signature of the National Secretary, in violation of the commission’s 2022 Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties.

Speaking the meeting went into a closed session, Ambassador Damagum thanked INEC for granting them audience, describing the engagement as both rare and important.

“We are here today to discuss and interact with you sincerely because we had NEC, and there was a decision of NEC which mandated me to sign a letter to avoid controversy. And I received your reply on that letter, urging us to be guided by rules. So I think we are here to interact sincerely with you, off camera, so that it will guide us when we get back to have a position,” he said.

In his response, INEC Chairman confirmed that the meeting was requested by the PDP and emphasised that the commission remains open to all registered political parties in line with its regulatory responsibilities.

Yakubu expressed concern about inconsistencies in the party’s communications, noting that INEC had received letters naming different individuals as the party’s National Secretary and called for clarity on the issue.

“This meeting is at the instance of the party. They requested to interact with us and our doors are always open to meet with leaders of political parties in our capacity as the registrar and regulator of political parties in Nigeria.
“You may recall that not long ago we received similar visitors from the Labour Party. So when the PDP said it was going to visit, we welcomed them. The acting national chairman has stated the purpose of the meeting to discuss the status of the party’s national secretary, particularly regarding the letter we sent to the party on the request for us to monitor their 100th net meeting, which was only signed by the chairman and not the chairman and secretary as provided in our regulations and guidelines.

“I am glad that that meeting was the 100th meeting of the NEC of the party, meaning that 99 times in the past you fully complied by inviting us by means of a letter signed by chairman and secretary of the party. So there are issues to discuss and we look forward to this important clarification from the party as to who is the secretary.

“In the last couple of months we received letters from the party saying that one Ude Okoye was the secretary. Thereafter, the party changed its mind and said it was sent to Samuel Anyanwu. Thereafter, the party changed its mind to say that it is Arch. Setonji Koshoedo, and again the party changed its mind to say it is Anyanwu.

“And the last letter from the party actually has no secretary at all. It was only signed by the chairman, which we responded to,” Yakubu said.

None of the attendees at the two-hour meeting agreed to speak to the journalists who pressed for their comments.