By Kolawole Ojebisi
A member of the House of Representatives, Ikenga Ugochinyere, has lambasted Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) while revealing how party lost its identity and independence by turning itself into an appendage of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Ugochinyere noted that the PDP was hijacked and became what he described as “errand party” because some members of the party are working for the APC.
The lawmaker alleged that some PDP governors and other stakeholders are working to keep Umar Damagum as acting national chairman till 2027 to weaken the opposition party.
Speaking on behalf of the opposition coalition lawmakers at a press conference in Abuja on Sunday, Ugochinyere alleged that there is a plot to derail the party’s planned national executive council (NEC).
“Today we have a political party—the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)—that’s supposed to lead the opposition, but we have political charlatans hijacking the heartbeat of the opposition party,” the lawmaker said.
“And turning it into an errand platform for the ruling party.
“Today, I want to inform the whole Nigeria that they have perfected a plan to ensure that the NEC meeting to choose a chairman from north central where the position is originally supposed to come from us is not possible.
“They want Umar Damagun, an imposter of the highest order, to continue to parade as the national chairman and stay in office till 2027 so they can foist on us a weakling that will be presidential candidate.
“We have impostors among us who have no honour and decency. The ruling party will be laughing at them now that they want to sabotage their own party.
“First, they said there was a Sallah holiday, and they shifted it; since last year they kept on shifting the NEC meeting till now no NEC meeting; they keep on giving different excuses.
“The national leaders of the PDP are frolicking with APC leaders, going to London having meetings with APC leadership.
“If the founding fathers of this party are still alive and are seeing what I’m seeing, they will be crying.
“I will mention the names of these PDP governors frolicking with APC. They think that by being weaklings, some of them will be allowed to control their states.”
Since 2022, the PDP has been struggling with an internal crisis that has polarised the party and its NWC.
A faction of the party wants Damagum to be removed as the acting national chairman, while another faction wants him to continue to occupy the position.
