The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Monday, moved the venue of its Board of Trustees (BoT) meeting from the Wadata Plaza, the party’s National Secretariat in Abuja; to the YarAdua Centre in the Central Business District of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The party faulted the takeover of its secretariat by armed policemen from the FCT Police Command.

Our correspondent at the Yar’Adua Centre observed the arrival of BoT members earlier denied access to the Wadata Plaza.

The PDP described as harassment, the actions of the policemen who barred BoT members from accessing the secretariat for their meeting.

The police had disallowed members of the party’s BoT) including Maina Chiroma from entrance into the premises of the secretariat.

A former National Secretary of the PDP, Umar Tsauri, told Channels Television that the police stopped the BoT members, saying they are acting based on an “order from above”.

The displeased BoT members and party chieftains including Bode George later left the secretariat amid tension over the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting also scheduled for Monday.

Meanwhile, the FCT Police Command has said that policemen were drafted to the party’s secretariat to maintain law and order.

In a statement, FCT Police Spokesperson Josephine Adeh said, “Police officers were only deployed to the venue to maintain law and order and ensure public safety in line with their constitutional mandate. At no time was the Secretariat sealed off by the Police.”

A Cocktail Of Intrigues

The PDP has been embroiled in an internal crisis that has lingered for years. The crisis has resulted in frequent postponement of the party’s NEC meeting.

The NEC meeting was postponed recently, prompting the party’s leadership to meet with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Acting National Chairman of the party, Umar Damagun, announced the postponement of the NEC meeting in Abuja last week but the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP insisted that the party’s 100th NEC meeting would proceed as scheduled on Monday, June 30, 2025.

Denouncing Damagum’s pronouncement, the NWC said that only the NEC had the power to make such a decision.

One of the major contending issues exacerbating the main opposition party’s crisis remained the National Secretary position which both Samuel Anyanwu and Sunday Ude-Okoye had laid claim to.

Also in his press briefing last week, Damagum declared that Anyanwu has been reinstated by the party as its National Secretary, a decision the NWC disputed.

The tussle for the party’s secretary position has been the subject of multiple court cases, with the Supreme Court delivering a judgment in March that both contending parties have interpreted in their favour.

Last week, Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja fixed September 22, 2025, for a hearing in another suit on the authentic National Secretary of the party. (CHANNELS)