A pressure group within Nigeria’s opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), known as PDP Frontliners, has raised alarm over an ongoing internal conflict targeting the party’s National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu. The group claims this “needless in-house war” threatens to weaken the PDP’s preparations for the 2027 general election.
In a statement released on Monday, PDP Frontliners accused certain party elements with coalition ambitions of deliberately fueling the crisis. They allege these members are misrepresenting a recent Supreme Court ruling that reinstated Senator Anyanwu as National Secretary, aiming to destabilize the party before their planned exit. The group’s leadership—President Alhaji Hussein Mohammed, Secretary Moses Abidemi, and Publicity Secretary Dan Okafor—emphasized that the Supreme Court’s decision last Friday invalidated prior lower court rulings, dismissing them as baseless attempts to prop up Hon Sunday Udeh-Okoye as a rival claimant to Anyanwu’s position.
The PDP Frontliners clarified that the apex court’s ruling explicitly nullified two lower court judgments that had been used to justify a meeting of 25 South East PDP stakeholders. This meeting had sought to replace Anyanwu, who was elected at a national convention nearly four years ago, with Udeh-Okoye. “What the Supreme Court said last Friday was that the two lower court judgments are invalidated,” the group stated, accusing entrenched forces of distorting the ruling by suggesting it merely affirmed political parties‘ rights to determine their leadership.
The group further noted that Senator Anyanwu’s temporary leave to contest a state election—a practice not uncommon among PDP National Working Committee members—is constitutional and has historical precedent within the party. They argued that the “proxy war” against him is a distraction driven by personal agendas rather than party rules.
PDP Frontliners urged those intent on leaving the party for a coalition to do so peacefully, rather than prolonging the internal strife. They highlighted Anyanwu’s loyalty, pointing out that he has remained a steadfast PDP member since 1999. The Supreme Court’s decision, they asserted, reaffirmed his position by ruling that leadership disputes are internal party matters, beyond the jurisdiction of the Enugu State High Court and the Court of Appeal.
As the PDP navigates this turmoil, the group warned that continued infighting could squander the party’s energies and resources, jeopardizing its chances in the 2027 elections.
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