The days of Umar Damagum as the Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may be numbered as the National Working Committee of the party is reportedly planning to remove him.
The PDP NWC met on Wednesday in Abuja where the plans were being finalized.
A competent source in the NWC revealed that some members of the integrity group within the NWC were plotting to remove Damagum.
The source further revealed that “It’s well-known that some NWC members remain dedicated to the PDP rather than to any individual leader. The integrity group, led by the National Legal Adviser Kamaldeen Ajibade (SAN), National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, National Financial Secretary, Daniel Woyegikuro, and two others, recently travelled to Bauchi to advance their agenda of replacing Damagum.”
It is an open secret that Damagum is believed to be not just supporting the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, but also reportedly doing Wike’s bidding who has been seen to be working against the PDP.
Also, party members said since his appointment as the acting National Chairman, Damagum has been accused for the raging crisis in the PDP and have called for his resignation.
This crisis deepened when Damagum and other NWC members loyal to Wike, not only secured approval for the contentious Rivers State PDP congresses but also postponed the National Executive Committee meeting from September 26 to October 24.
The crisis got even messier following public support for current Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara on August 24, Fubara by PDP governors.
It would be recalled that the PDP Governors’ Forum, under the leadership of Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, condemned Wike’s threat as irresponsible on September 3 after Wike asserted that he would not retract his threat to take action in PDP states.
Sources present in the Bauchi meeting reported that the NWC members convened with the Bauchi State Governor, who serves as the Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, to update him on their discussions and propose solutions.
He stated, “The situation within our party is concerning. There are efforts to undermine it. A few of us who share similar views met with the Bauchi State Governor to address these issues. We explained to him how Damagum is managing the party in a way that favours Wike and a select few, violating the party’s Constitution.
“Many of us oppose this direction and are prepared to support the governors in taking necessary actions to realign the party. We believe Damagum should be replaced by someone from the North Central while he returns to his role as Vice Chairman.
“The Bauchi State Governor, who initially backed Damagum’s appointment to the NWC, expressed regret for his support and apologised to those who came to see him about the damage caused by Damagum’s leadership. Senator Bala Mohammed has also committed to rallying other governors to facilitate Damagum’s replacement and restore the party’s integrity as soon as possible.
“Moving forward, we will engage with more governors and party leaders to ensure the right actions are taken. Enough is enough; if Damagum and his supporters refuse to cooperate, we will be forced to take a stand publicly in the coming days.”
