Security has been massively heightened at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national headquarters, Wadata Plaza in Abuja, as two rival factions—one loyal to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and the other backing the newly elected leadership—prepared to hold separate meetings at the same venue on Tuesday.
A video circulating online showed armed police officers and patrol vans stationed prominently at the entrance of the party’s secretariat on Tuesday morning.
Samuel Anyanwu, the factional National Secretary of the party loyal to Nyesom Wike, arrived early and took physical possession of the secretariat.
Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Anyanwu firmly maintained that he remains the party’s national secretary until his tenure expires in December, adding that he has settled into his office despite the ongoing leadership tussle.
When directly asked whether he invited the security operatives who had barricaded major sections outside the premises, Anyanwu confirmed he did, stating: “It is the PDP’s usual practice to call in security personnel whenever a meeting of such magnitude is scheduled, in order to maintain law and order.”
Anyanwu added that the security personnel were also on standby to prevent any “intruders” who had announced plans to hold a separate meeting at the Wadata Plaza.
The deepening crisis followed a fiercely contested national convention in Ibadan on Saturday, which produced a new National Working Committee (NWC) led by Kabiru Turaki and resulted in the expulsion of several prominent Wike loyalists, including Anyanwu.
Despite their expulsion, Wike’s allies issued a notice on Monday convening an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) and Board of Trustees meeting at the headquarters. According to the notice issued by Anyanwu, both meetings were slated to be held at the NEC Hall of the PDP National Secretariat, Wadata Plaza, Abuja.
However, the Kabiru Turaki-led leadership also fixed a separate meeting for the same venue and date.
Turaki, speaking to journalists earlier, confirmed that the new NWC had alerted authorities to the potential for conflict. “We came to interface with the Commissioner of Police of the FCT regarding the meeting we plan to have tomorrow. It will be the inaugural meeting of our National Working Committee,” he said.
Turaki insisted that Wike’s loyalists lacked legitimacy following their expulsion in Ibadan. “Next to God, the national convention is the highest authority of a political party. Those expelled are no longer members of our party. We’ve reported their moves because we do not want any breach of peace,” he said.
Turaki warned that any group attempting to operate from the secretariat outside the newly elected leadership would be treated as “interlopers.”