Management and staff of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have taken a definitive stance in the ongoing leadership crisis by declaring support for Setonji Koshoedo as the party's acting National Secretary.
The declaration was made on Wednesday during a press conference in Abuja, where PDP's Director of Administration, Gurama Bawa, spoke on behalf of 83 staff members, expressing their acceptance of the recent resolution by the PDP Governors Forum.
"After a thorough consideration, the management and staff of the PDP National Secretariat unanimously align with and declare unalloyed loyalty to the recommendation of the PDP Governor's Forum as adopted by the NWC in recognising and working with Arch Setonji Koshoedo as the Acting National Secretary of our party in line with the provisions of the PDP Constitution," Bawa stated.
The controversy surrounding the National Secretary position began in December 2024 when a lower court named former National Youth Leader, Sunday Ude-Okoye, as the PDP National Secretary while Senator Samuel Anyanwu was away contesting the Imo State Governorship election.
Anyanwu challenged this ruling at the Supreme Court, which on March 21 dismissed his removal, declaring that internal party matters are not for courts to decide. Following this, the PDP governors met in Ibadan on April 14 and requested the South East to nominate a new secretary.
The party's National Working Committee (NWC) subsequently endorsed Setonji Koshoedo at its 600th meeting on April 29, though this failed to completely resolve the dispute.
In their statement, the PDP staff emphasized that the NWC's directive for Koshoedo to act as National Secretary was "in the overall interest of the stability of our party" and represented "the best step at the moment to restore the confidence of members of the party and preserve the integrity of our internal processes given the sensitive nature of the office of the National Secretary in the operation of a political party."
This development marks a significant shift in the party's internal dynamics as it continues to navigate leadership challenges ahead of future electoral contests.
