PDP Reconciliatory Move Collapses As Wike Pulls Out of Agreements, Accuses Makinde of Being “the Chief Culprit” of Party’s Crisis

•Vows to continue fight for justice within party

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike has announced his withdrawal from all previous agreements aimed at resolving the Peoples Democratic Party’s crisis, vowing to “fight on until justice is attained.”

Wike, in a strong worded statement he personally signed on Sunday, titled “PDP Crisis: My Position”, laid bare the root causes of the party’s turmoil, attributing it to “dishonesty and lack of trust amongst its key stakeholders”.

He particularly singled out Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde as the “architect” of the party’s woes, accusing him of being “the chief culprit” in the party’s inability to adhere to agreements. “Non-adherence to agreements reached was the bane of the party, and he was the chief culprit of this anomaly,” Wike stated.

Wike recounted a series of meetings held to salvage the party’s unity. “Since the 2023 general election, the PDP has been wantonly swinging from one part of a slippery precipice to another, owing fundamentally to dishonesty and lack of trust amongst its key stakeholders. To stem this ugly trend, efforts have been made to arrest this pernicious virus of dishonesty and treachery and enthrone fidelity to agreements with a view to stabilising the party and moving it forward,” he said.

He recalled a meeting of the G5 in Lagos, where he “made it clear to the Governor of Oyo State, HE Seyi Makinde, that he was the architect of our problems, pointing out to him that non-adherence to agreements reached was the bane of the party, and that he was the chief culprit of this anomaly.” Despite heated discussions, the group resolved to “bury the hatchet and make progress.”

A subsequent expanded meeting in Abuja, attended by Governors Makinde, Umaru Fintiri, Bala Mohammed, and former Senate President Bukola Saraki, saw further negotiations. Wike clarified, “I made it clear that I had no personal problems with HE Bala Mohammed, except that he hides under the façade of Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum to serially renege on agreements.” The meeting ended with resolutions, including the retention of Senator Samuel Anyanwu as National Secretary in line with the Supreme Court’s judgement, the withdrawal of all legal matters relating to Rivers State by the National Legal Adviser, and the withdrawal of the suit on the state of emergency.

Despite these efforts, Wike lamented that the agreements were being “crudely violated” even before the Bukola Saraki Reconciliation Committee could begin its work. He accused Makinde of colluding with Peter Mbah of Enugu State to orchestrate a meeting of South-East leaders, threatening to pull out of the PDP if Ude Okoye was not adopted as National Secretary. “I have since granted an interview to the effect that that resolution of the South-East leaders cannot hold,” Wike stated.

He further alleged that Makinde organised individuals at the National Secretariat to insist that the Deputy National Secretary should act as National Secretary, in direct violation of the earlier agreement. “To attempt to give credence to this farce, a letter was written by the Deputy National Secretary, calling for a meeting of the NEC of the party. Furthermore, the letter confirming the candidacy of the governorship candidate of the party in the forthcoming governorship elections in Anambra State, duly signed by the National Secretary, Senator Anyanwu, and the acting National Chairman, was portrayed as rejected by the party through a rebuttal letter signed by the National Publicity Secretary, acting on the orders of Seyi Makinde and Peter Mbah,” Wike detailed.

The minister cited the aborted zonal elective congress in Jos on May 24, 2025, as a direct consequence of these violations. “A well-publicised and properly attended zonal elective congress of the PDP was aborted because the letter inviting INEC to the congress was signed by the Deputy National Secretary of the party. INEC refused to attend because the proper signatory recognised by law, that is Senator Samuel Anyanwu, was not a signatory to the invitation notice. This is undeniably distasteful, provocative, and annoying, to say the least,” he said.

He reiterated his commitment to the party since 1998, stating, “I have been in this party since 1998 and have worked tirelessly for the survival of this party with all my strength, and it is on record that none of these persons have done anything close to what I have done to sustain this party. What is more painful is that I contributed substantially to most of these governors winning their elections, yet I have not made any personal demands on any of them, and I would never do so.”

Wike concluded by announcing his withdrawal from all previous agreements. “Most importantly, I had thought that we could keep the trust amongst us, but since it is now obvious that they would continue to play games to the detriment of the party, as is the case in the current debacle in the North-Central zonal elections, I have now firmly decided to pull out of all agreements hitherto reached. I have decided to fight on until justice is attained.”

(Culler from The Sun, excluding headline)