By Obinna Uballa
Fresh from a favourable court ruling that upended the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s disputed leadership structure, the bloc aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has moved swiftly to consolidate control of the party by fixing March 28 and 29, 2026, for a national convention in Abuja.
At the heart of the move is a determination by the Wike-backed camp to translate judicial victory into organisational authority, as the party struggles to emerge from months of internal wrangling, parallel claims to leadership, and protracted legal battles.
The decision was announced after what the faction described as its 105th meeting of the PDP National Executive Committee held on Monday in Abuja.
In a communique jointly signed by the factional National Chairman of the Caretaker Committee, Abdulrahman Mohammed, and National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu, the NEC approved a nationwide timetable for congresses, with ward and local government congresses slated for February and state congresses in March, ahead of the national convention.
“Pursuant to its constitutional responsibilities and in line with preparations for a smooth transition to an elected leadership, NEC approved and confirmed the following schedule for party congresses nationwide: Ward congresses in February; Local Government congresses in February; and State congresses in March,” the communiqué read.
It added that March 28 and 29, 2026, had been confirmed for the PDP National Convention in Abuja, where a new National Working Committee and other statutory organs of the party would be elected.
The NEC also approved the extension of the tenure of the National Caretaker Working Committee and affected state and zonal caretaker committees, pending the completion of the congresses.
The Caretaker Committee was directed to immediately activate convention sub-committees and begin full logistical, administrative and consultative preparations for what it described as a “transparent, inclusive and credible convention.”
More significantly, the NEC reaffirmed the legitimacy of the Mohammed-led Caretaker Committee, with Anyanwu as secretary, describing it as “the only lawful national administrative organ of the party” empowered to function as the National Working Committee pending the convention.
The development follows a Federal High Court judgment in Ibadan which nullified the PDP’s National Convention held between November 15 and 16, 2025, that produced Taminu Turaki as National Chairman.
In the ruling, Justice Uche Agomoh barred Turaki and other officials elected at the Ibadan convention from parading themselves as national officers of the party and affirmed the Mohammed-led Caretaker Committee as the recognised authority pending a valid convention.
For the Wike-aligned bloc, the judgment provided more than legal validation; it offered political leverage in an internal power struggle that has defined the PDP’s post-2023 trajectory.
At a meeting of the party’s Board of Trustees in Abuja, factional BoT Chairman Mao Ohuabunwa described the PDP as being at a defining moment and urged leaders to subordinate personal ambitions to collective survival.
“The PDP has passed through turbulent waters in recent months. Internal disagreements, leadership disputes, and legal contests have tested our cohesion. Yet, the party has endured; not because of personalities, but because of institutions; not because of noise, but because of restraint; not because of force, but because of fidelity to constitutional order,” Ohuabunwa said.
Mohammed, in his remarks, thanked the BoT for its support and acknowledged Wike’s backing, which he said had strengthened the committee’s resolve to reposition the party.
“Any moment from now, we shall roll out our timetable for activities that have to do with outstanding congresses in some states that will usher in a seamless National Convention,” he said.
He urged members to remain disciplined and law-abiding, stressing that the PDP could not afford further fragmentation.
