Former Benue Governor Gabriel Suswam Resigns from Nigeria’s PDP, Citing Unresolved Internal Crisis
Former two-term Governor of Benue State and Senator, Gabriel Suswam, has resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), citing the party’s persistent and unresolved internal conflicts as his reason for departure.
The resignation was communicated in a personal letter dated Wednesday, addressed to the Mbagber Council Ward in Logo Local Government Area of Benue State and subsequently made available to journalists in Makurdi. Suswam, a prominent figure who represented the party as a House of Representatives member, state governor, and federal senator, expressed profound gratitude for the opportunities afforded him by the PDP over decades.
“For decades, the PDP provided me with a platform to serve the Nigerian people… For these opportunities and the trust reposed in me at different times, I remain sincerely grateful,” Suswam stated in the letter.
However, he asserted that the party’s current condition compelled his exit. Suswam described the PDP as being “bewildered with unending internal crisis,” arguing that all reconciliation efforts had failed. He painted a stark picture of the party’s decline, stating it had transformed from “a symbol of cohesion, internal democracy, and progressive opposition” into an institution “plagued by persistent and unresolved internal conflicts” spanning leadership, structure, discipline, and ideology.
“The PDP today appears to be perpetually trapped in crisis mode; an institution in political intensive care, with no consensus diagnosis and no agreed treatment plan in sight,” Suswam wrote, noting that repeated interventions and reconciliatory committees had not yielded solutions.
He further explained that his personal democratic convictions and desire for a stable political framework made continued membership untenable. “I believe that political parties must serve as platforms for ideas, discipline, and constructive engagement, not arenas of endless internal warfare,” he said, adding that the party’s state no longer aligned with these ideals.
Suswam’s resignation underscores the deepening fissures within one of Nigeria’s major political parties. His departure signifies a loss of a key figure with deep roots in the party’s historical structure. While he wished the party well should it eventually resolve its “longstanding internal contradictions,” his exit highlights the PDP’s ongoing struggle to present a united front as the nation approaches critical electoral cycles. His future political alignment remains unspecified.
