- Damagun, Ologunagba fight Dirty
By Abiola Olawale
The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has reached the rooftop as the Federal High Court in Abuja has granted an order restraining the party from suspending its acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Damagum.
The presiding judge, Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja also granted an order restraining the National Executive Committee (NEC) and Board of Trustees (BoT) of the PDP from suspending Damagum.
This comes after the just-suspended PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, in a statement on Friday, claimed the party has suspended Damagum and the national secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu.
Ologunagba announced the purported suspension after the NWC of the PDP headed by Damagum had initially suspended him and the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade.
The party on Friday has been rocked by suspension and counter-suspension. The statement issued by Ologunagba reads in part: “The National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP has extensively considered the series of complaints raised against the Acting National Chairman, Amb. Illiya Damagum and National Secretary, Sen. Samuel Anyanwu particularly the letter addressed by them to the Court of Appeal in Appeal No:CA/PH/307/2024 against the party’s position in the case involving the 27 former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who vacated their seats upon decamping from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“The NWC condemned this anti-party activity of the Acting National Chairman and the National Secretary which is in gross violation of the provisions of the PDP Constitution (as amended in 2017) and their Oath of Office.
“Consequently, the NWC, puunderections 57, 58 and 59 of the PDP Constitution, has suspended Amb. Illiya Damagum and Sen. Samuel Anyanwu as Acting National Chairman and National Secretary of the Party, respectively, and referred them to the National Disciplinary Committee for further action.”
However, the statement issued by Damagum’s faction reads in part: “The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) arising from its 593rd Meeting today, Thursday, October 10, 2024, has directed the National Publicity Secretary (NPS), Hon Debo Ologunagba and National Legal Adviser (NLA), Kamaldeen Adeyemi Ajibade, SAN, to step aside.
“As a result, the NWC constituted a committee to be chaired by the Deputy National Chairman (South) H.E. Amb. Taofeek Arapaja, to investigate the issues raised against the officers in compliance with the provisions of the Constitution of the Party.
