From Victor Osula, Abuja
The internal crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), escalated sharply on Saturday as a faction led by Taminu Kabiru Turaki, SAN, moved ahead with a special convention in Abuja, where former President Goodluck Jonathan was symbolically ratified as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
The Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana, received the Certificate of Return on behalf of Jonathan during the factional gathering, which eventually held in Area 10, Garki, after an abrupt venue shift triggered by heightened security presence and reported roadblocks by police operatives.
Party officials and delegates had initially converged on the A-Class Park and Event Centre in Wuse 2, but the venue was later abandoned following mounting pressure linked to a directive from the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) restricting unrecognised political gatherings in public facilities.
Organisers subsequently relocated the exercise within Area 10, where the presentation eventually took place under tense conditions.
At the centre of the exercise, Prof. Jerry Gana addressed supporters and journalists, describing the move as part of efforts to reposition the opposition ahead of 2027, even as the faction insisted that all procedural requirements for the event had been met.
The Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee, maintained that it had duly notified security agencies and fulfilled contractual obligations with the event centre before the disruption. Its spokesman,
Ini Ememobong, accused authorities of political interference and alleged that FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike had pressured facility operators to withdraw hosting rights.
Ememobong insisted that the faction remained undeterred, arguing that no law empowered the FCT administration to dictate where political parties could hold meetings, describing the development as an attempt to stifle opposition activity.
However, the faction recognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC and led by Wike strongly rejected the entire exercise, insisting that no such convention or ratification process had been approved by any recognised organ of the party.
Speaking in Abuja, the National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Mohammed, dismissed the gathering as “false, misleading and unauthorised,” warning that it was designed to create confusion within the political space.
Mohammed further argued that the PDP had already concluded all its statutory primary elections in line with the Electoral Act and INEC guidelines, and urged Nigerians and party members to disregard what he termed a “political charade.” A former governorship candidate of the party in Cross River state, Senator Sandy Ogor emerged a presidential candidate in a primary in which former Benue governor, Samuel Ortom was returning officer.
Mohammed also called on security agencies to investigate the organisers and urged Jonathan to publicly distance himself from the process.
In a further twist to the deepening schism, the Wike-backed structure, reaffirmed former lawmaker Senator Sandy Onor as its consensus presidential candidate for 2027, underscoring the widening divide within the opposition party.
Jonathan, who served as Nigeria’s president from 2010 to 2015, has not publicly declared interest in the 2027 presidential election despite recurring political speculation over a possible return bid.
A Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday dismissed a suit seeking to stop the former President from contesting the 2027 presidential election, describing the action as an abuse of court process.
