9 hours Ago By Guardian Nigeria
PDP bigger than any individual, says Diri The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) recorded a twist, yesterday, as the Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, openly rejected the South South Zonal Congress of February 22, 2025, backed by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike. Consequently, Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, stated that “PDP is greater than any individual” and that its internal challenges could be resolved if members commit to addressing them. Damagum, who inaugurated a caretaker committee to pilot the affairs of the party in the zone pending the conduct of a substantive zonal congress, insisted that the party had not conducted its South South Zonal Elective Congress, despite claims to the contrary.
He said: “This is a very important occasion and I use this opportunity to tell us that there was no election, as far as this party is concerned, in the South South. I have to make this clear because the tenure of the zonal committee has expired and we still have a few weeks or a month or so to conduct the zonal congresses. So we find it necessary to come up with this caretaker committee.
” At the Calabar zonal congress, Wike stated that it was the final elective congress because it was backed by the party’s constitution. The South South Zonal Vice Chairman of the PDP, Dan Orbih, was re-elected at the congress. Condemning plans for another congress in the zone, Wike, during a media session monitored in Abuja on Wednesday, took a swipe at the PDP’s National Working Committee (NWC), calling it “stupid” for the decision to conduct another South-South Zonal Congress.
The Damagum-led NWC ignored Wike’s stance and, on March 7, appointed Emma Ogidi as Chairman of the Caretaker Committee while setting April 12 as the new date for the zonal congress. Damagum stated at the inauguration: “As far as the NWC is concerned, the South South Zonal Congress has not been held. Since their tenure has ended, we are setting up a caretaker committee today.
” Ogidi, who spoke on behalf of the committee, appreciated the NWC for the opportunity to serve, saying: “I assure you that by the grace of God, we will discharge our duties dispassionately to the glory of God.” SPEAKING to reporters at Wadata House in Abuja after the inauguration of the caretaker committee, Diri emphasised that the responsibility to tackle internal disputes lies with party members, not just its leadership. Diri, who also chairs the South South PDP Governors Forum, stressed that for the party to remain competitive as Nigeria’s oldest, it must focus on resolving internal conflicts and strengthening unity.
He said: “For me, we have to look inwards before accusing those outside our party. We have to first fix our internal issues. It is very easy to point accusing fingers.
But the PDP has to sit back and tackle its internal challenges. That is only when we can stand to compete with others. “I want the PDP to be competitive with other political parties.
We are the oldest political party in Nigeria. So we have no reason to be accusing outsiders.” On whether the party’s leadership had the political will to discipline those fomenting trouble, Diri averred that such would reside with the members.
“We are all members of the party. The moment we all resolve that we need to fix our party, there cannot be any one person that is bigger than the party,” he said. Diri stressed that the newly inaugurated zonal caretaker committee had the mandate of the NWC to look into every issue affecting the party in the South South.
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