Abia PDP Chairman Amah Abraham says holding the party’s convention in Ibadan now could silence the Southeast

Abia State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Amah Abraham, has warned that the party risks technically silencing the Southeast if it proceeds with its planned national convention in Ibadan without completing congresses across the region.

Speaking in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Wednesday, Abraham stressed that the PDP must adhere strictly to its own rules of engagement and the Electoral Act before convening a national convention. According to him, holding the convention without valid congresses in key states would amount to undermining internal democracy within the party.

“The simple implication is that if we are going to Ibadan for any congress, the Southeast with about 70% of its delegates will not be able to proceed for that national convention. What are the implications? The implication is that you are technically or tactfully trying to silence the voice of the Southeast.”

Abraham explained that based on a letter jointly signed by the suspended national chairman, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagun, and the national secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was informed that congresses would be conducted in 12 to 14 states, including Anambra, Ebonyi, and Cross River. However, a week before the exercise, Damagun reportedly wrote another letter—without the national secretary’s co-signature—postponing congresses in those states indefinitely.

He said, “PDP must be seen to follow its own rule of engagement before proceeding to national convention. The convention cannot be built on the premise of an improper fraction. It cannot happen where inordinate ambition outweighs due process. As I speak to you, there is a letter in the public domain written by the suspended national chairman, Ambassador Damagun, and the National Secretary distinguished Senator Samuel Anyanwu. They had written a letter to INEC to inform INEC that congresses will be conducted to either 12 or 14 states of the federation. And the political parties, the way they operate is just like building a superstructure where before you talk of a state congress, you must have concluded local government congress. And before you talk of a national congress, you must have been seen to have concluded all the state congresses, all the congresses of the six geopolitical zones, because those are the congresses that will give birth to the delegates who will be saddled with the responsibility of voting at the national convention.

“Now, there is an emphasis for national convention. I am the state chairman from Abia. From the Southeast where I come from, we have only two standing chairmen from Abia, and my colleague from Imo State, honorable Austin Nwachuku. As it stands as of today, based on the letter written by the suspended chairman Damagun and Senator Anyanwu, based on that letter, congresses were supposed to take place in Anambra state, in Ebonyi state, and the Southeast geopolitical zone. These congresses have not taken place.”

Abraham’s warning comes amid legal wrangling over the PDP’s planned national convention. The Federal High Court in Abuja had earlier halted the exercise, ruling that the party had failed to comply with electoral guidelines and INEC regulations in the build-up to the event. Justice James Omotosho held that the PDP could not proceed with the convention until it properly conducted all necessary congresses and issued valid notices jointly signed by both the national chairman and national secretary.

However, in a dramatic twist, the Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan on Tuesday ordered the PDP to go ahead with the convention as scheduled for November 15 and 16. Justice Ladiran Akintola granted an ex-parte motion filed by a party member, directing that the PDP and its convention committees proceed in line with the timetable and guidelines already released. The court also ordered INEC to attend and monitor the convention as required by law.

Abraham cautioned that proceeding with the Ibadan convention despite unresolved legal and procedural issues could further alienate regions like the Southeast and deepen mistrust within the party. (ARISE NEWS)