Politics
Nobody is bigger than PDP- Gov Diri asserts
Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, has declared that no individual is greater than the Peoples Democratic Party, amid the ongoing leadership crisis rocking the opposition party.
Speaking on Thursday after the inauguration of the South-South Zonal Caretaker Committee at the PDP national headquarters in Abuja, Diri stressed that the party’s challenges and their resolutions remain internal matters.
“The PDP must sit back and address its internal issues and challenges. Only then can we stand up and compete with others. We are the oldest political party in Nigeria, so we have no reason to blame outsiders,” he said.
Diri’s remarks come as the party grapples with internal divisions, particularly regarding the leadership of the National Secretary position, which the Appeal Court in Enugu recently ruled in favour of Sunday Ude-Okoye.
The crisis within the party has intensified, leading to divisions within its key structures, including the Board of Trustees, the National Working Committee, and the National Executive Committee.
The situation is particularly tense in the South-South, where a recent zonal congress held on February 22 without the governors’ input has deepened the rift.
Meanwhile, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has launched a scathing attack on some PDP governors, accusing them of undermining the party’s survival.
“This is a set of governors that want PDP to die. Their only interest is to kill the PDP,” Wike said on Wednesday while addressing journalists on the crisis within the party.
Diri, however, insisted that the PDP must resolve its internal problems, emphasizing that no individual is bigger than the party.
“We have to look inward. If you listen to the BOT chairman, we must first fix our own problems. It is easy to point fingers, but what is happening within us?
“For me, I want the PDP to be competitive. We must resolve our challenges because, once we do that, there can be no one person bigger than the party,” he added.
Diri described the inauguration of the South-South Zonal Caretaker Committee as a step forward but admitted that the party was still in the process of rebuilding.
“I wouldn’t say the party has been fully restored, but in our zone, the South-South, you will agree with me that it is the only zone where we have four PDP governors. We have all resolved to stand together.
“The Deputy Governor of Delta is here. I have just received messages from the governors of Akwa Ibom and Rivers. So, it’s clear that we are united. If we are united, what we will do is show leadership and work with the zonal committee so that our zone will be safe again for the PDP,” he added.
Meanwhile, the newly inaugurated South-South Zonal Caretaker Committee Chairman, Emmanuel Ogidi, assured party members that the committee would carry out its responsibilities impartially, without bias or fear.
Delta state Commissioner of Information, Charles Aniagwu, said that Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and other Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders in Delta joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) to protect the state’s interest.
Addressing journalists at Government House, Asaba, Aniagwu, said the move was aimed at preserving unity, deepening development, and safeguarding the wellbeing of Deltans.
His words: “The decision was taken to build the bond of love that have existed in our state, to further advance the cause of security and welfare of our people and to a very large extent ensure that development in Delta, because every politics is local, is not truncated.
“And in taking that decision we came to the inevitable conclusion that moving out of the PDP is very very necessary for us to be able to collaborate with our kith and kin and build that state that every Deltan will be proud of.
The commissioner likened the current state of the PDP to palm wine that has lost its taste.
He said: “We believe that what is happening and the state of the PDP is akin to that palm wine whose taste has changed and there was a need for us to change the drinking pattern.
“And that is why this decision has been taken unanimously by leaders and stakeholders of the party.
“By the grace of God, Monday next week, we will be able to make a very big statement after the fact that we are moving into the APC.”
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike and Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma have hailed the defection of Delta state Governor, Sheriff goes and his predecessor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa into the ruling APC.
Wike gave the commendation in a statement signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media, Mr Lere Olayinka in Abuja on Wednesday.
Recall Okowa, the People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP) Vice Presidential candidate in the 2023 election on Wednesday, defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Okowa decamped alongside Gov. Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta and other PDP stalwarts in the state, collapsing the entire PDP structures in the state to the APC.
Wike described the development as another endorsement of the president’s good governance and commitment to the development of the country.
He called on other Nigerians, who were still sitting on the fence to throw in their support for Tinubu.
According to him, Okowa and Oborevwori open endorsement of Tinubu is a vindication of the position I took in 2023, which was based on the interest of a united Nigeria.
“I commend Okowa and Gov. Oborevwori for this heart-warming decision, which must have been informed by good governance and commitment of President Bola Tinubu to the oneness and development of Nigeria.
“That is what I have always told people to come out and say, not to be running up and down when they have problems.
“They have come out at the right time to show support for Mr President so that the people of Niger Delta can benefit more from the government, and I commend them for it.
“I am particularly happy that what I saw before the 2023 presidential election, others are now seeing and are joining the “Renewed Hope train,” the minister said.
The Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has announced a postponement in date of resumption of plenary sittings from April 29 to May 6, 2025.
The announcement was contained in an internal memo dated April 20, 2025, addressed to all senators and signed by the Senate Clerk, Andrew Ogbonna Nwoba.
The memo is reproduced in extenso hereunder:
“Distinguished Senators,
“I am directed to inform you that the resumption of plenary sittings of the Senate, earlier scheduled for Tuesday 29th, April 2025, has been rescheduled to Tuesday, 6th May 2025.
“This postponement is made to allow Distinguished Senators, stay with their constituents, during the International Workers’ Day public holiday, in the first week of May, and to further enhance constituency engagements.
“Distinguished Senators are kindly requested to take note of this postponement, while regretting any inconvenience, the change might have caused.”
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