A former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umar Damagum, has assured that the party will surmount its current challenges.
Damagum gave the assurance during a formal handover to the new National Working Committee (NWC) of the party in Abuja on Tuesday.
According to him, despite the current challenges, the future of PDP remains bright, insisting that the party will recover from its crisis which had led to the loss of some governors to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“We are a party to beat; that is why they are trying to frustrate us. We are people of faith. God is a just God and He does not support injustice,” he said.
Receiving the handover documents, the new National Chairman, Tanimu Turaki, said the task before the new leadership was enormous, but expressed confidence that they were equal to the challenge.
Turaki assured that the new NWC would restore the party’s winning spirit.
“We will take the party back to the people. There will be no impunity, and there will be no injustice,” he said.
The new PDP helmsman noted that the party was presently at a crossroads because some felt it must be weakened.
He stressed, however, that democracy thrives when a multi-party system is allowed to function.
Turaki added that the new NWC would study the handover notes as a guide for his administration and called for the cooperation and support of the former NWC members.
(NAN)
Bode George wants Tinubu’s comment on sealing of PDP secretariat
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has urged President Bola Tinubu to comment on the alleged forceful police takeover of the PDP national secretariat.
George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the party, made the call during a news conference on Tuesday in Lagos, saying the president’s silence suggested approval of the action.
He described the alleged police intervention as a threat to democracy, accusing actors within the APC-led federal government of undermining institutions for political gains ahead of the 2027 elections, at the expense of national stability.
George said the November 18 disruption at the party secretariat by a group previously expelled from the PDP amounted to a serious assault on democratic order.
He alleged that a serving Federal Minister encouraged the group to challenge the authority of duly elected party leaders.
The PDP Board of Trustees member questioned the legality of the police occupation of the party headquarters, asking who authorised the action and under what law.
“It is like a tenant attempting to overtake the landlord,” he said.
He warned that the president must not remain silent while democratic principles are eroded, drawing parallels with the political infractions of 1962 to 1966 which destabilised the nation.
George noted that the attempts to weaken PDP mirrored the intolerance that triggered the “Operation Wetie” crisis in the Western Region.
The PDP elder said the party governed the country for 16 years without weaponising institutions against opposition politicians.
He also queried why PDP-related legal matters were consistently routed to the same judges in the Abuja Division, insisting that the judiciary must be impartial.
George appealed to Minister Nyesom Wike to avoid acts capable of destroying the party that elevated him politically.
He also urged First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, to reconsider the N20 billion National Library project, suggesting that the funds could be better used to empower millions of youth.
He maintained that Nigeria was at a crossroads and warned that repeated violations of due process could further erode national cohesion.