INEC Holds Closed-Door Talks With Warring PDP Factions Over Leadership Crisis
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Friday, December 19, convened a closed-door meeting at its Abuja headquarters with the two rival factions of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a bid to address the party’s protracted leadership crisis, PulseNets learnt.
The meeting brought together the faction led by Tanimu Turaki and the group headed by Abdulrahman Mohammed, which is reportedly backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
PulseNets obtained that Turaki arrived at the meeting alongside members of his National Working Committee (NWC), party secretariat officials, and former Niger State governor, Babangida Aliyu. Mohammed, on his part, was accompanied by members of his national caretaker committee, including its secretary, Senator Sam Anyanwu.
Speaking at the opening session, INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, said the commission’s intervention was necessitated by multiple and conflicting communications received from the party leadership factions.
“This meeting has become necessary because we have received several correspondence from various sides requesting one thing or the other,” Amupitan said.
“And we are aware that INEC is charged statutorily under the Act and under the Constitution to monitor the activities of political parties.”
The INEC chairman further explained that the commission’s decision was also informed by preparations for upcoming elections, including the Federal Capital Territory Area Council (FCTA) polls scheduled for February 21, 2026, as well as the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states slated for June and July 2026 respectively.
“As part of the build-up to these elections, we have issued our own schedule of activities to all political parties, and we are committed to ensuring very smooth elections in the FCT area councils, Ekiti, and Osun states,” he told PulseNets.
Amupitan noted that the conflicting correspondence from the PDP posed a challenge to the commission’s planning processes, prompting the need for direct engagement with the party’s top leadership.
“We have received conflicting correspondence from the PDP, and we felt that bringing everyone together to rub minds would help us chart a clear way forward as it concerns these elections,” he said.
“I am pleased that today we have very senior party officials present, so we can sit as a family, discuss these issues frankly, resolve them, and move forward.”
Reaffirming INEC’s neutrality, the chairman stressed that the commission’s actions were strictly guided by constitutional and legal provisions.
“We are mindful of the need to uphold the sanctity of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Amupitan stated.
“INEC operates on a tripod of legal regimes: the Constitution, the Electoral Act, and the regulations we have made. We are fully determined to comply strictly with these laws and regulations.”
He then urged all parties present to engage constructively.
“Without much ado, I welcome you all and request that we have very frank discussions so that we can achieve the objectives of this meeting,” he added.
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Following the opening remarks, the meeting proceeded into a closed-door session.
PulseNets reported that the outcome of the engagement is expected to produce key recommendations aimed at resolving the PDP’s internal leadership dispute ahead of critical electoral timelines.
