Former National Auditor of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Barrister Ray Nnaji, has suggested that the party has tolerated FCT Minister Nyesom Wike for far too long.
Nnaji expressed this view during an exclusive interview with PulseNets, offering insights into the ongoing crisis plaguing the PDP.
This statement follows Wike’s bold challenge to any PDP governor or leadehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyesom_Wiker to publicly label him a mole, a declaration made during his appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme. Wike had previously issued threats to State governors under the PDP platform, warning that he would “put fire” in their states, while also asserting that he owed no one an apology, stating, “heaven will not fall.”
However, reflecting on the state of the party, Nnaji told PulseNets that no true PDP member would endorse what is currently happening. He added, “I don’t see Wike being in both the APC and PDP simultaneously.”
Nnaji also highlighted that the party’s delay in replacing former National Chairman Iyorchia Ayu exacerbated the crisis. He remarked that the leadership vacuum provided the opportunity for internal strife to fester.
He told PulseNets: “No right member of the PDP will commend what’s happening in the party. I don’t see Wike being in APC and the PDP at the same time. It’s the soul of Rivers State they are pursuing for the purposes of 2027.
“You know quite well that Wike used his power as a former governor to make sure that APC was assisted to come to power, that was why he was compensated with a ministerial appointment.
“He (Wike) wanted to pull the structure he had then into the APC. That explains why the APC dissolved its Rivers State executives, which prompted the members to go to the court.
“Wike himself, and those 25 State House of Assembly members who defected, when they found out that others weren’t following them, the problem in the state started.
“The main fact is that the acting Chairman failed to do what he ought to do. It cannot be blamed on the acting Chairman alone, it should be blamed on the Party entirely because the constitution is very clear.
“When a vacancy exists, what do you do? Of course, the constitution provided answers to all those things, but they failed to do it.
“Iyorchia Ayu was from North Central, when he left the position, Damagun came just to fill the gap.
“The party shouldn’t have wasted time in replacing Iyorchia Ayu. The party would have replaced Ayu with another person from that zone. If that would have been done, I don’t think we would have entered into this crisis.”
Commenting further, Nnaji compared the situation with past crises in the PDP, suggesting that while it isn’t as severe as the Amodu Sheriff debacle that ended up in the Supreme Court before the 2019 elections, the party still has time to recover. “I still believe that the party will come out of it, even though they didn’t do what they ought to have done early enough,” he said.
On the subject of a reconciliation committee, Nnaji questioned its purpose, asking, “I don’t know who they are reconciling with. Is it Wike or the Governor? From the look of things, the government is not ready to play ball when Wike wants the structure. And if you give Wike the structure, the governor becomes a follower of Wike.”
He continued, “That is not what the governor wants. He’s supposed to be the leader of the party in the state and take charge.”
PulseNets learnt that Wike had been invited to face the PDP’s disciplinary committee, though the outcome of that meeting remains uncertain. Nnaji concluded by lamenting the party’s inaction, stating that PDP should have acted sooner, allowing Wike too much room to manoeuvre. He further noted that Wike, despite not being involved in the formation of the PDP, has benefited significantly from it. He added that seeking the party’s destruction, which has been so beneficial to him, is not in Wike’s long-term interest.
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“If he destroys PDP, who’s sure the APC will be a comfortable place for him to stay?” Nnaji queried. “I don’t think he’s thinking from that angle. It is his personal interest that matters most to him now.
“The PDP has to make sure it puts its house in order to see if it can liberate the country come 2027.”
