A new leadership twist has emerged within the Peoples Democratic Party as its Board of Trustees (BoT) steps in to take over the party’s national leadership following the Supreme Court judgment that nullified its last national convention.
Chairman of the BoT, Adolphus Wabara, announced the development in a statement on Thursday, describing the intervention as a constitutional move to prevent a vacuum at the top of the party.
According to him, the decision followed the ruling of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which invalidated the Ibadan convention that produced the Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee (NWC), alongside other disputed leadership arrangements.
“This constitutional intervention of the BoT is so as not to allow any leadership vacuum at the national level of our party,” Wabara said.
He stressed that the implication of the judgment is far-reaching, insisting that actions taken by some party officials after the convention no longer stand.
“All actions taken by Senator Samuel Anyanwu… including the appointment of Abdulrahman Mohammed as Acting National Chairman… are illegal, null and ab initio void,” he stated.
Wabara explained that with the collapse of the existing leadership structures, the BoT has become the highest functioning organ within the party, thereby assuming responsibility for its national leadership.
“The statutory onus of leadership… now rests on the shoulders of the Board of Trustees,” he added.
He disclosed that the BoT has “immediately assumed responsibility of the national working leadership of the PDP” as a temporary stabilisation measure.
To restore order, the BoT chairman said an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting would be convened to appoint an interim National Working Committee in line with the Electoral Act ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He also directed staff of the party to resume work at the national secretariat under the supervision of the BoT pending the emergence of a new leadership.
While commending party stakeholders, including Governors Bala Mohammed and Seyi Makinde, for their resilience, Wabara urged members to close ranks and rebuild the party.
“The PDP has suffered enough… The time has come for us to make sacrifices, sheathe our swords and embrace genuine reconciliation,” he said.
