Bode George Kicks as Wike Bloc Appoints Factional PDP BoT Chair

A former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bode George, has faulted the dissolution of the party’s Board of Trustees, led by former Senate President Adolphus Wabara, by a faction loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

The faction, led by its chairman, Abdulrahman Mohammed, announced the dissolution of the PDP BoT on Friday and named a former senator from Abia State, Mao Ohuabunwa, as the new chairman.

But George said the faction lacked the power to take such a decision.

The development marks a fresh escalation in the lingering internal conflict that has split the party’s National Working Committee and thrown its planned national convention into uncertainty.

The latest turmoil began last week with the suspension of the National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu; the National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature; and the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade, by the party’s leadership over alleged anti-party activities.

However, the three NWC members, believed to be loyal to Wike, swiftly countered their suspension by announcing the suspension of the Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, and other committee members.

They later declared the Deputy National Chairman (North Central) of the party, Mohammed, as the new acting National Chairman.

On Monday, the crisis deepened further when Mohammed, accompanied by police operatives, took control of the PDP national secretariat in Abuja, declaring himself the authentic acting chairman and urging members to “join hands to rebuild the party.”

Since then, both factions have laid claim to the party’s leadership.

While Damagum’s camp insists it is preparing for the party’s national convention scheduled for November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, relying on an order by Justice Ladiran Akintola of the Oyo State High Court, the Wike faction has appealed the ruling, maintaining that the convention stands suspended.

At a meeting held at Wike’s residence in Abuja on Friday, Mohammed formally announced the dissolution of the Wabara-led BoT, accusing it of losing focus and moral credibility.

“Today marks a significant turning point in the life of our great party. We have come together not merely to inaugurate a new Board of Trustees but to renew our faith in the ideals that gave birth to the PDP—justice, fairness, inclusivity, and respect for the rule of law,” he said.

Mohammed accused Wabara’s BoT of failing to provide the moral guidance expected of it, saying its leadership had become “divided and ineffective.”

According to him, Wabara’s recent suspension by the Abia State chapter of the party for alleged anti-party activities rendered his continued leadership “untenable.”

Under Wabara, Mohammed claimed, “The BoT that was meant to be the moral compass of our party became weakened by internal compromise. This vacuum of guidance was worsened by the actions of the then-suspended National Chairman, Umar Damagum, whose leadership often chose convenience over the constitution and personal loyalty over the rule of law.

“When a political party begins to disregard its own constitution, it loses the very soul that holds it together. This painful reality compelled some of our members to seek judicial redress—not out of anger or ambition, but out of love for the PDP and concern for its survival.”

Mohammed also commended Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, for suspending the proposed Ibadan convention, saying the judgment was a reminder that no institution is above the law.

“The ruling was not an attack on the PDP,” he said. “It was a wake-up call to return to our roots, restore order, and reawaken the values that once made the PDP the pride of Africa.”

The factional leader blamed the party’s lingering troubles on the abandonment of its zoning principle, arguing that internal decay began when the PDP jettisoned the arrangement before the 2015 elections.

“The decay we are correcting today began when we allowed ambition to override equity and ignored the cries of reason within our ranks. The consequences of those decisions still haunt us today,” Mohammed lamented.

‘Mohammed lacks power to dissolve BoT’ — George

As of Friday evening, neither the Wabara camp nor the Damagum-led leadership had officially responded to the dissolution, but George questioned the source of Mohammed’s power to dissolve the Wabara-led group.

Speaking exclusively with Saturday PUNCH, George stated that Damagum’s emergence as PDP chairman was at the behest of the NWC and the highest decision-making organ of the party, the National Executive Committee.

He said, “The negativity from this bunch of scallywags telling us that the BoT is dissolved—what powers do they have? Who made Mohammed Abdulrahman chairman of the PDP? We are not like other political parties where individuals are appointed anyhow.

“The National Working Committee and National Executive Committee of the PDP met and approved the appointment of Umar Damagum as the PDP National Chairman.”

Describing Mohammed as a clown, he asked, “Who is this man dancing naked in the market? There is no need for further discussion. What these people want is to disrupt the party and make the All Progressives Congress the only party in Nigeria. That will be very dangerous for this nation of over 200 million people.

“I don’t know where these clowns are coming from or who is directing them. When Adolphus Wabara said we should set up a reconciliation committee, I told them that we had crossed the Rubicon. Where does Mohammed get his power from? For someone to come from nowhere and announce the dissolution of the BoT, that person must be drunk.”

George said the convention would go on as planned.

“We will all assemble in Ibadan for the event. Mohammed is a dreamer. Let the public be aware that we have a structure that cannot be taken down by anybody,” he added.

Shortly after its inauguration, the Ohuabunwa-led BoT met and deliberated on several issues bordering on the state of affairs of the PDP.

At the end of the meeting, the Board reaffirmed that the PDP “remains one indivisible, united, and democratic family firmly committed to the ideals of justice, equity, and progress.”

It also recognised the authority of all legally constituted organs of the party and reiterated its confidence in the ongoing efforts to restore internal order, discipline, and constitutional adherence in line with the judgment of the Federal High Court delivered on October 31, 2025.

The Ohuabunwa-led BoT, however, backed the ruling of Justice Omotosho, saying, “No process or organ of the party should act in contempt of court or outside constitutional provisions, as such actions would render subsequent outcomes null and void.

“The BoT reaffirms that the judgment of the Federal High Court remains superior and weightier in law than the interim order of the Oyo State High Court. In view of the fact that the Federal High Court judgment has been appealed, prudence and respect for judicial processes demand that the proposed national convention be postponed until the Court of Appeal delivers its decision.

“The Board notes that the immediate past BoT Chairman, Senator Adolphus Wabara, and Secretary, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, having publicly taken positions in the ongoing intra-party crisis, can no longer continue to serve in their previous capacities in order to preserve the neutrality, integrity, and moral authority of the BoT.”

Accordingly, the Board unanimously approved the election of Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, who also hails from the South, and Isah Dansidi from the North, as the Chairman and Secretary of the newly constituted Board of Trustees, respectively.