A prominent member of the Peoples Democratic Party, Samuel Anyanwu, has criticised the party’s National Convention held over the weekend in Ibadan, Oyo State, describing the exercise as illegitimate and lacking due process.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Anyanwu dismissed the gathering as a mere jamboree, insisting that the party failed to meet key prerequisites before holding the convention.
He argued that the PDP had not fulfilled the requirement of conducting congresses across all states, noting that several states were yet to carry out the exercise.
According to him, even the few states that successfully held their congresses had not transmitted their reports to the Independent National Electoral Commission before a faction of the party proceeded with the Ibadan convention.
“16 states had not even done their congresses; the entire South-East has not done their congress. All that happened yesterday [Saturday] was a jamboree.
“Even the ones done earlier have not been communicated to INEC,” Anyanwu said.
Pointing to the absence of delegates from multiple states, he maintained that the convention lacked legal standing.
“When I heard somebody yesterday at the convention, when they were celebrating, having their jamboree, saying that we must obey the rules of the party, I laughed,” he added.
The Ibadan convention expelled some PDP leaders, including Nyesom Wike and Ayo Fayose, and elected Taminu Turaki as the new National Chairman of the party.
