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Keeping to their resolve, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders from the South East, including Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah; Board of Trustees Chairman, Adolphus Wabara; Senator Austin Akobundu on Tuesday shunned the meeting of PDP stakeholders held at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.
This is as the South East stakeholders who met in Abuja passed a vote of confidence on Sen. Samuel Anyanwu, as national secretary of the party.
The South East stakeholders however warned that the lingering crisis over the position of the party’s national secretary could make the party suffer and lose the 2027 election.
PDP leaders from the region had, in a statement by its national vice chairman, Chief Ali Odefa, distanced themselves from yesterday’s meeting, having endorsed Sunday Ude-Okoye as national secretary at a meeting held last Friday in Enugu.
However, the Abuja meeting was presided over by Anyanwu and was attended by Chris Ubah. Anyanwu said there was no basis for disagreement since the party is awaiting the decision of the Supreme Court on the position of the national secretary.
He said the meeting was called by South East members of the PDP NWC and not the national leadership.
Anyanwu blamed Odefa for instigating political mischief, claiming that the vice chairman had been expelled from PDP and was not in a position to convene any PDP meeting.
Explaining the genesis of his crisis, Anyanwu said, “In October, the former National Vice Chairman South East, Chief Ali Odefa went and connived with some people to remove me as the National Secretary.
“He went and convinced the governor of Enugu that our constitution says that I will resign for me to run because he knows that his tenure as National Vice Chairman is coming to an end, so he wanted to perpetuate himself in office. So he sold this idea to the governor of Enugu state, His Excellency Peter Mbah whom I met and told him that it is wrong.
“He went and printed fake electoral guidelines for primary election and took it to his excellency and he bought into it without knowing the truth. Based on that, they now came and told me that I should resign.
“On the 10th of November while I was busy preparing for my election, they went and got from a state high court in Enugu and based on this fake document, the judge gave an order that I am supposed to have resigned. They told me that someone else has been appointed, one Ude-Okoye has been appointed as National Secretary of the party.
“I was elected through a national convention and it is only through convention that I can be removed.
“They went ahead and told the governor because he is the only governor from the South East that if I become a governor, as former National Secretary of the party, that I will be too powerful and that it is better for him to continue to become the only governor from the South East.
“On the 9th of January 2025, Federal High Court Abuja gave a judgement and it was quite explicit that that I remain the national secretary of this party until 9th of December, 2025 when my tenure will elapse.”
Reading the communique of the South East stakeholders, after the meeting that last for several hours, the South East Legal Adviser of PDP, Ukpai Ukairo, said that the South East leaders have passed a vote of confidence on Anyanwu.
He added that Ali Odefa is no longer a member of the Peoples Democratic Party and should not be found in the circle of any official role within PDP.
Accordingly, “he should not have any role or play any part in any form or manner with concerning the affairs of the PDP.
By Article 27(3) of the Constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party the Zonal Executive Committee can only be summoned at the instance of the National Vice Chairman. In consideration of the fact that there is no National Vice Chairman in office the Zonal Executive Committee Meeting of the South East fixed for the 24th January, 2025 cannot be a lawful meeting of the organ of the party.
“Arising from the foretasted legal opinion, the members of the Zonal Working Committee (ZWC) from Abia, Imo and Anambra States and several statutory members of the Zonal Working Committee ignored the notice of meeting and consequently boycotted the meeting.”
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