As Turaki Faction Demands INEC Derecognise Anyanwu And Wike Camp Insists No Valid Expulsion Occurred
The protracted leadership crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party has taken a dramatic new turn, with zonal chairmen of the party signalling their readiness to assume interim national leadership should the courts uphold the expulsion of National Secretary Senator Samuel Anyanwu and nullify the conventions organised under his authority even as the rival Turaki faction demands INEC immediately derecognise Anyanwu as a party member and the Wike-aligned faction fires back insisting that no valid expulsion ever took place.
The developments reveal a party fracturing along multiple legal, factional, and structural fault lines simultaneously, with each faction pursuing different courts, different constitutional arguments, and different endgames while PDP zonal chairmen quietly position themselves as potential saviours of a party that may soon have no legally recognised national leadership at all.
Several PDP zonal chairmen have confided that they are prepared to invoke the doctrine of necessity a constitutional principle that permits extraordinary action to prevent a governance vacuum should pending court decisions leave the party without legally recognised national leaders.
Their plan, discussed among at least two zonal chairmen and expected to be expanded to others, would involve appointing an acting National Chairman and acting National Secretary from among themselves and other surviving National Working Committee members whose tenures remain intact.
“It is high time we put a final stop to all these crises. The zonal chairmen are not just there; we are part of the NWC and we have the mandate to stabilise the party,” one zonal chairman stated, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
He outlined the scenario that would trigger their intervention: “If the court upholds Anyanwu’s expulsion and the nullification of the Ibadan convention, it means there will be a leadership vacuum. Anyanwu, as an expelled member of the PDP, cannot act for or on behalf of the party. You cannot build something on nothing.”
The chairman went further, explaining the cascading legal consequences: “Since he wrote INEC to notify the commission of the Wike-backed convention, the court may declare his actions a nullity if he is no longer a party member. If both conventions are nullified, then we will have to step in.”
He confirmed that discussions have already begun: “Two of us have discussed this, and we need to step up efforts in that direction.”
A second zonal chairman echoed the readiness while acknowledging the uncertainty: “We don’t know what the court will say about the two conventions, so it may be premature to make plans. But despite that, NWC members are constitutionally recognised, and our functions are clearly spelt out. A doctrine of necessity may arise from these legal issues.”
However, the North-East Zonal Chairman, Babangida Maddibo, counselled patience: “Let us wait for the outcome of the Supreme Court on the cases. We shouldn’t put the cart before the horse. When we get to the bridge, we will cross it.”
The zonal chairmen’s positioning comes against the backdrop of an aggressive legal move by the Tanimu Turaki-led faction, which has written directly to INEC demanding the immediate derecognition of Anyanwu.
In a strongly worded letter dated April 16, 2026, addressed to INEC Chairman Professor Joash Amupitan, the faction’s counsel Abdullahi Ibrahim SAN demanded that the commission enforce the January 12, 2026, judgment of the FCT High Court.
The letter cited Justice Yusuf Halilu’s ruling in Suit No. FCT/HC/CV/1050/2025, which dismissed Anyanwu’s suit and affirmed his expulsion from the PDP.
“Senator Samuel Anyanwu has ceased to be a member and officer of the Peoples Democratic Party and has no competence to act on behalf of the party in any capacity whatsoever since his expulsion,” the letter stated.
The Turaki faction emphasised that Anyanwu’s filing of a notice of appeal on April 10, 2026, does not constitute a stay of execution meaning the High Court judgment remains subsisting and enforceable under Section 287(3) of the 1999 Constitution.
“The judgment dismissing his case remains subsisting and in force, and the commission has a constitutional obligation to enforce, comply with, and implement the judgment even without prompting from the Peoples Democratic Party,” the letter declared.
The faction demanded that INEC expunge all recognitions granted to Anyanwu since January 12, 2026, including any correspondences, notices, and his listing on the INEC portal as PDP National Secretary a move that, if implemented, would unravel the entire Wike-backed convention and the NWC it produced.
The Turaki faction’s spokesperson, Ini Ememobong, spelled out the devastating implications if Anyanwu’s expulsion is upheld and enforced.
“The so-called caretaker committee is in limbo. If the court upholds Anyanwu’s expulsion, it would mean everything built on him will collapse like a pack of cards. It affects the so-called National Working Committee,” Ememobong stated.