Former Rivers State governor Nyesom Wike has emerged victorious once again, as the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has validated the controversial congresses in Rivers State, spanning from the ward level to local governments and the state itself.
As things stand, Governor Siminalayi Fubara appears to have lost all control of the party in Rivers State.
This development comes despite ongoing litigation, as a Rivers State court has temporarily barred the PDP from holding congresses in the State.
Additionally, the NWC has tentatively postponed the next National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting from September 26 to October 26. These decisions were part of the NWC meeting chaired by acting national chairman Amb Iliya Damagum.
During a meeting two weeks ago in Jalingo, Taraba State, the PDP governors instructed the NWC to ensure that all party structures in Rivers State were handed over to Governor Fubara.
However, Wike has issued a warning to any PDP governor who meddles in Rivers State’s political affairs, threatening to make their states ungovernable. In response, the PDP governors, through their Director General, condemned Wike’s remarks as unacceptable and reckless.
Despite this, the PDP governors reiterated their directive to restore all party structures to Fubara.
Yet, in yesterday’s NWC meeting, the Damagum-led party approved the congresses in Rivers State, despite some opposition from the party’s National Legal Adviser, Adeyemi Ajibade, who argued that recognizing the Rivers State congresses was unfair due to unresolved legal challenges. His objections were ultimately overruled by the NWC.
Some other states, including Abia and Ebonyi, were incorporated into the congresses, with the NWC ordering their completion before the upcoming NEC meeting.
Consequently, the NEC meeting has been rescheduled from September 26 to October 26.
With this adjustment, all congresses will be ratified during the October meeting, and a new national chairman may be elected. Given this shift, there are growing indications that Fubara might accelerate plans to join the Alliance Peoples Party (APP).
