Wike Rebukes Damagum Over National Secretary’s Resumption Order

In a fiery televised appearance on TVC News on Wednesday evening, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, publicly criticized the Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umar Damagum, over what he described as an unconstitutional directive involving the party’s National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu.

Wike, a former governor of Rivers State and a key power broker within the PDP, lashed out at Damagum for ordering Anyanwu to return to office, insisting that such authority does not rest with the acting chairman.

“I watched on national television and heard the acting national chairman directing the national secretary to resume. The national secretary is not your appointee. You can’t ask him to resume because of the illegalities you’re perpetrating,” Wike said during the broadcast.

The minister’s comments come amid an intensifying leadership tussle within the PDP, following internal legal disputes and the aftermath of a Supreme Court ruling that has left some ambiguities regarding party positions. Senator Anyanwu, who is also the party’s governorship candidate in Imo State, has been at the center of controversy, with questions raised over whether he could simultaneously hold both roles.

Earlier this week, Damagum had instructed Anyanwu to resume duties as National Secretary after a meeting with officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), purportedly to align the party’s leadership structure with the law.

However, Wike condemned this move as not only unlawful but also a display of ignorance. “How can you go to INEC to ask for legal interpretation on internal party affairs?

That shows you don’t understand what you’re doing,” he said.

The development highlights the deepening crisis within the opposition party, as factions aligned with different stakeholders, including Wike, continue to vie for control.

Wike warned that such acts of overreach could lead to further disintegration of party cohesion and hinted that the legitimacy of certain actions taken by Damagum could be legally challenged.

This public confrontation further reveals the fragile state of unity within the PDP, which has struggled to recover from its electoral loss in the 2023 general elections and has since been grappling with leadership battles and internal realignments.

Observers say the outcome of this dispute may determine the party’s trajectory ahead of the next election cycle.