Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, has said that the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is now “dead” due to its internal crises.

Fayose, in an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday, said the party’s collapse was evident from the exodus of key figures and its inability to resolve internal disputes.

The former governor described the party as “comatose,” blaming its downfall on disunity and poor leadership.

“A year ago, I said the PDP is in trouble, and if you don’t find that solution on time, the party will be dead, and the party is dead now.

“Now, the party is dead. Again, I have to tell the hard truth: PDP is in trouble; the trouble has gone bad, and they are in comatose,” he stated on Tuesday.

He stated that the PDP had been in decline for years but failed to act in time and that the defection of many prominent members reflected the depth of the PDP’s crisis.

“I’ve told Nigerians the challenges confronting a party whose big heads and players have jumped out of the water. That clearly shows you the challenge of the PDP. Who is going to save Jerusalem when the people who are supposed to save Jerusalem have jumped out of the water?” he asked.

Planned Convention

Earlier, Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja had restrained the PDP from holding its convention scheduled for November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, Oyo State.

The ruling followed a suit by former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido, who alleged that he was unlawfully denied the opportunity to purchase the nomination form for the chairmanship position.

Justice Lifu held that the PDP failed to publish a timetable for the convention as required by law, saying due process was ignored.

He warned that neglecting the rule of law could lead to anarchy and ordered that the convention be suspended until all legal requirements were met.

Reacting to the court disputes surrounding the party’s planned national convention, Fayose said, “Have you ever had in the judicial system that the state high court will hold a brief and say that they are representing the court of appeal, no matter how bad the case.

He criticised the Oyo State High Court for granting the PDP temporary approval to proceed with the convention despite a Federal High Court order stopping it.

“The judge in Oyo has now sat on an appeal of a Federal High Court. When has a state court become an appellate court?” Fayose queried.

He accused the court of overstepping its jurisdiction and warned that such judicial irregularities could worsen the PDP’s crisis.

“If you open the doors, INEC will take all manner of judgements from state courts. The Oyo High Court has no jurisdiction,” he stressed.

Fayose also claimed there were inconsistencies in the national chairmanship process that sparked the dispute.

Leadership Crisis

The PDP has faced months of internal strife marked by defections, factional suspensions, and leadership battles.

This year alone, the party has lost four serving governors, Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta), Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Douye Diri (Bayelsa), and Peter Mbah (Enugu), to the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 elections.

The conflict between acting National Chairman Umar Damagum and National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu deepened the division, with both camps suspending each other’s loyalists.

In July, a former presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, resigned from the PDP, citing irreconcilable differences.

He has since spearheaded coalition talks on the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to build a new opposition front against the APC. (CHANNELS)