A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has fixed March 28 and 29 for the election of new members of the National Working Committee (NWC).
The dates were approved on Monday during the faction’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja.
In a communiqué issued after the sit-down, the party commended the recent ruling of the federal high court in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, which nullified the November 15 national convention.
The PDP NEC expressed “absolute” confidence in the independence of the judiciary for upholding the rule of law.
The party said its ward and LG congresses will be held in February, while state congresses will precede the national convention, which has been scheduled for March in Abuja.
The Wike-backed PDP approved the extension of the tenure of the national caretaker working committee (NCWC) led by Abdulrahman Muhammed, and other panels at the state and zonal levels, pending the conduct of the congresses.
“NEC called on all members of the party at all levels to remain united, disciplined, and loyal to the PDP, eschew actions capable of undermining Party cohesion, and place the collective interest of the party above personal considerations,” the communiqué reads.
“NEC reaffirmed that the PDP remains committed to rebuilding a strong, disciplined, democratic, and electorally competitive party capable of providing credible leadership and governance to Nigerians.”
In November 2025, a faction of the party backed by Seyi Makinde, governor of Oyo, and Bala Mohammed, his counterpart in Bauchi, convened a national convention in Ibadan and elected a new set of national officers with Kabiru Turaki as chairman.
The convention was preceded by a series of conflicting court judgements, with some rulings from federal high courts in Abuja halting the event over alleged breaches of party constitution and electoral laws, while the Oyo state high court in Ibadan cleared the PDP to proceed with the exercise and directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to monitor it.
The Wike group, which opposed the convention, would later form a parallel NWC, a board of trustees (BoT), and NEC.
In December, INEC rejected the request to recognise the Turaki-led NWC, citing multiple court verdicts.
