Top stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Northcentral have announced plans to present a replacement for the party’s acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Ilyas Damagum, early next year.
This announcement followed a meeting held in Abuja, which was attended by prominent figures including two former Senate presidents, two former presidential aspirants, ex-senators, a current member of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC), former ministers, four ex-governors, and the only serving governor in the zone.
The stakeholders disclosed that there were efforts among the party’s leaders across the North to remove Damagum and replace him with someone from the Northcentral.
Notable attendees of the meeting included former House of Representatives member David Ombugadu and former Benue State governor, Senator Gabriel Suswam.
The stakeholders issued a three-point communiqué, stating:
- The PDP reviewed the state of the party, particularly the vacant National Chairman position following Senator Iyorchia Ayu’s exit.
- The party’s constitution stipulates that vacant positions should be filled by appointments from the respective zone, in accordance with Section 47 (6).
- They called for party leaders to make necessary sacrifices to restore cohesion and goodwill in the party, urging the return of the chairmanship to the Northcentral to complete its tenure.
The communiqué emphasized the need for consensus building and stressed that the Northcentral is united in its efforts to preserve the PDP as a platform for good governance in Nigeria.
The meeting was attended by key figures such as Plateau State Governor Caleb Muftwang, ex-Senate Presidents David Mark and Bukola Saraki, serving National Legal Adviser Alhaji Kamaldeen Ajibade (SAN), former Interior Minister Senator Abba Moro, and ex-Governors Jonah Jang (Plateau), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Abdulfatai Ahmed (Kwara), and Idris Wada (Kogi). Other attendees included Senators Tunde Ogbeha, Dino Melaye, Zainab Kure, and several other prominent PDP members.
