The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain Umar Sani has accused Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike of using a televised outburst to legitimize his faction amid the party’s ongoing leadership crisis. Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Thursday, Sani said Wike’s intervention was an “unconvincing” attempt to clarify the legal and political status of the dispute after statements from Wike’s supporters failed to persuade the public.
Sani argued that Wike’s explanation mixed references to three separate court decisions – the Federal High Court in Ibadan, the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal, and a Supreme Court judgment – without offering a coherent picture of the party’s internal situation. “He was oscillating between the judgment of the Ibadan Federal High Court, the judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal in Abuja division, and, of course, the Supreme Court,” Sani said. “He was not able to clearly put the cards on the table for Nigerians to understand what is actually going on.”
The comments follow Wike’s contentious media session in Abuja on Wednesday, during which he criticised several senior PDP figures, including Governor Seyi Makinde, former Senate President Adolphus Wabara, former minister Jerry Gana and former minister Aminu Turaki. Wike alleged that these leaders were involved in fraudulent activities and questioned their moral standing in managing the party’s affairs. He also accused Makinde of participating in “419 activities” within the PDP.
The legal battle stems from rival claims to the party’s national chairmanship. In July 2023, the Federal High Court in Ibadan ruled that former Governor Kashim Shettima was the legitimate chairman, a decision later upheld by the Court of Appeal in Abuja. The Supreme Court, however, delivered a split ruling in February 2024 that left the issue unsettled, prompting both factions to seek broader public support.
Sani’s remarks underline the difficulty of communicating complex judicial outcomes to the electorate. By highlighting the inconsistencies in Wike’s narrative, he suggested that the minister’s televised appeal may have further muddied public understanding rather than clarified the leadership dispute.
The PDP’s internal conflict remains unresolved, with both sides awaiting a definitive judicial pronouncement. Observers note that continued public spats could affect the party’s cohesion ahead of upcoming electoral cycles, and that any eventual court decision will be pivotal in determining which faction assumes control of Nigeria’s main opposition party.
