With just over a year remaining in his four‑year term, Iyorchia Ayu is teetering on a precarious edge that analysts fear could precipitate an untimely fall from his exalted seat. In the span of a week, the former Minister of Industry has seen his continuous chairmanship of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) threatened by a suspension from his own ward and a court order barring him from performing the duties of national chairman. Dirisu Yakubu notes that, like his predecessors, Ayu may never return to Wadata Plaza, the edifice that houses the party’s national secretariat.
These are not the best of times for Ayu, the court‑suspended National Chairman of the PDP. A few months ago, the former Senate President became a thorn in the side of five PDP governors who wanted him removed at any cost. He dismissed them as “children who have yet to cut their political teeth” when he and a few leaders founded the party in 1998, and warned that the party and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, would win the February 25 election with or without their support. In October 2021, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, in concert with several fellow governors, facilitated the exit of Uche Secondus two months before the end of his tenure. Wike and his Benue‑state counterpart, Samuel Ortom, were instrumental in Ayu’s emergence, literally hand‑picking him to succeed Secondus. Although Ortom was not initially part of the plot to make Ayu national chairman, he later convinced his colleagues that Ayu possessed infallible integrity, firmness and strength of character. This endorsement secured Ayu’s easy approval by the PDP Governors’ Forum and led to his unopposed election at Eagles Square, Abuja, where he stood as the sole candidate for the coveted position.
In the build‑up to that special convention, other prominent names had been linked to the chairmanship, including former Senate Presidents David Mark and Bukola Saraki, former Kaduna Governor Ahmed Makarfi, and his Katsina counterpart Ibrahim Shema. In recent months, Ayu has been locked in a battle with Governors Wike, Seyi Makinde, Ortom, Okezie Ikpeazu and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Rivers, Oyo, Benue, Abia and Enugu states, respectively, over his refusal to step down after Atiku became the party’s presidential candidate. The governors argued that a northerner (Ayu) could not remain chairman after another northerner was nominated, citing Article 3(c) of the PDP Constitution, which mandates zoning of party and public offices to ensure equity between the North and South. With Ayu showing no willingness to resign, the governors withdrew from the PDP Presidential Campaign Council and vowed not to support or campaign for the party unless the chairman stepped aside. The PDP entered the election in this acrimonious state and lost to Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, who was declared winner with over eight million votes; Atiku placed second and Peter Obi third. Atiku lost in all five states whose governors formed the “Integrity Group,” which had thrown its support behind either Tinubu or Obi.
A few weeks after filing a petition challenging the election outcome, the PDP was thrown into further turmoil when Ayu was suspended by the executive committee of his Igyorov ward in Gboko Local Government Area, Benue State, for alleged anti‑party activities and failure to pay membership dues. The next day, a Makurdi High Court, presided over by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, granted an ex parte order barring Ayu from acting as national chairman. Ayu stepped aside on Tuesday, vowing to seek legal redress to regain his seat. Umar Damagum, until recently the deputy national chairman (North), has assumed acting control of the party pending resolution.
Ayu’s ordeal mirrors the pattern that ended Secondus’s reign. In September 2021, PDP Ward 5 in Andoni Local Government Area, Rivers State, suspended Secondus for non‑payment of dues. A Port Harcourt High Court, led by Justice Okogbula Gbasam, affirmed the suspension and issued a perpetual injunction preventing Secondus from acting as chairman. Secondus’s argument that only the National Executive Committee could sanction him under Article 59(3) of the PDP Constitution was rejected, with Justice Gbasam calling for the article’s removal as contrary to natural justice. Secondus never returned to his seat, losing all legal battles to reinstate him.
Analysts now wonder whether history will repeat itself and if Ayu will be able to finish his tenure. Public affairs analyst Jide Ojo told a Saturday interview that Ayu should resign, noting that “when an issue like this goes into litigation, we know how court processes usually pan out.” He added that only one PDP chairman since 1998 has completed his term, suggesting that forcing one’s stay against the party’s wishes is futile. Ojo warned that Governor Ortom and the G‑5 governors would use every legal avenue to remove Ayu, especially after Ayu’s alleged pre‑election promise to resign if the presidential candidate came from the North. Ojo also cited accusations that Ayu failed to vote in Benue’s governorship election and did not pay dues, arguing that resignation would restore peace and allow the party to convene a new chairman.
Constitutional lawyer and political analyst Abdul Mahmud echoed this view, stating that Ayu’s removal stems from his inability to demonstrate electoral value even within Benue. He argued that Ayu’s stepping aside signals respect for the rule of law but also reflects his lack of a broader electoral base, making a return unlikely. Asukwo Archibong, National Chairman of the New Forum for Development, said Ayu’s departure could signal to the party’s various interest blocs that a universally acceptable chairman is now possible, urging dialogue on the way forward.
Executive Director of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, Emmanuel Onwubiko, condemned Ayu, blaming him for denying the South‑East a chance at the PDP presidential ticket in 2023. He labeled Ayu a “saboteur” whose friendship with Atiku compromised the party’s performance, noting that the PDP lost the South‑East and failed to win in five states during the presidential election. Onwubiko suggested that Ayu’s suspension marks the end of his influence.
Should Ayu’s bid to return fail, the sad pattern of PDP chairmen—apart from retired Col Ahmadu Ali—not completing their tenures may continue, perpetuating a narrative that has haunted the party since its formation in 1998.
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