The internal crisis rocking the opposition Peoples Democratic Party took another dramatic turn on Thursday as the faction loyal to former Minister of Special Duties, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, openly challenged the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to carry out his threat of sealing off offices linked to the group in Abuja.
The challenge followed Wike’s warning during his monthly media briefing that any building operating as a parallel PDP national secretariat in the Federal Capital Territory would be shut down by the authorities.
The minister had also threatened sanctions against any financial institution that allows the Turaki-led bloc to open bank accounts for the sale of nomination forms ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Responding during an interview on Arise Television, a chieftain of the Turaki faction, Umar Sani, insisted that the group was operating openly from an office located in Area 10, Abuja, and challenged the FCT minister to make good his threat.
“We have an office that we are running in Area 10. Wike knows the office, let him come and demolish it,” Sani declared.
Sani accused the camp loyal to Wike of attempting to intimidate party members and suppress dissent within the PDP. He further alleged that the rival faction was itself involved in questionable financial dealings regarding the sale of nomination forms, arguing that the party’s authentic documents remained in the custody of the Board of Trustees led by former Senate President Adolphus Wabara.
The latest exchange has further exposed deep divisions within the PDP over the party’s leadership structure following conflicting interpretations of a recent Supreme Court ruling on the party’s disputed convention and national leadership.
Wike had maintained that the faction headed by Turaki lacks legal recognition and accused its leaders of attempting to deceive Nigerians by presenting themselves as the authentic leadership of the PDP. According to the FCT minister, only the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led leadership recognised by his camp has the authority to operate party accounts and conduct official activities.
The minister also argued that opening bank accounts for party transactions requires authentic incorporation documents and signatures from recognised officials of the party, warning that any bank that cooperates with the Turaki faction risks severe consequences.
The confrontation is the latest episode in the escalating power struggle within the PDP, with rival camps battling for control of the party structure ahead of preparations for the 2027 elections.
ANN Politics
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