Further cracks have developed in the fragile atmosphere of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, rejected the adoption of erstwhile Minister for Special Duties Tanimu Turaki (SAN) as the party’s consensus candidate for the National Chairman.
By Emma Ogbuehi
Further cracks have developed in the fragile atmosphere of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, rejected the adoption of erstwhile Minister for Special Duties Tanimu Turaki (SAN) as the party’s consensus candidate for the National Chairman. Lamido insists on being included in the race, threatening legal action against the party if he was not granted access to purchase nomination forms ahead of the forthcoming national convention scheduled for November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, Oyo State. The situation has engineered further tension in the party and has cast doubts on the National Convention holding, unless spirited actions are taken.
Lamido’s hard stance came as the North’s consensus candidate, Turaki, formally submitted his nomination form, pledging to entrench fairness, discipline, and stability within the party if elected at the forthcoming national convention. During its 102nd National Executive Committee meeting held on August 25 in Abuja, the PDP agreed to zone its 2027 presidential ticket to the South while allocating the position of National Chairman to the North.
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Following this decision, northern leaders met over the weekend and further micro-zoned the chairmanship position to the North-West. Subsequently, northern PDP governors, led by Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri, along with other party leaders, endorsed Turaki as the consensus candidate for National Chairman from the North.
However, some northern stakeholders seen to be loyal to Lamido and led by the party’s National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, expressed dissatisfaction, alleging that they were not consulted before the endorsement.
Signs of the brewing crisis began to emerge when in a statement on Monday, Chairman of the National Convention Organising Committee and Governor of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, announced the suspension of the screening of aspirants for its 2025 Elective National Convention, earlier scheduled for Tuesday (today), citing unforeseen circumstances.
“The National Convention Organising Committee (NCOC) of our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has put on hold the screening of aspirants for the 2025 Elective National Convention, earlier scheduled for Tuesday, October 28, 2025, due to unforeseen circumstances,” the statement read.
“A new date will be communicated once fixed. The NCOC regrets any inconvenience caused by the postponement. All aspirants and members of our party should note the foregoing and be guided accordingly,” it added.
The committee expressed regret over the delay and appealed for understanding among aspirants and members while efforts continue to address the issues that prompted the postponement.
Fintiri assured that the committee remains committed to ensuring a transparent and credible process leading to the convention. “The NCOC remains focused on delivering a credible, hitch-free 2025 Elective National Convention on Saturday, 15th to Sunday, 16th November, 2025, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital,” he stated.
In reaction to the adoption of Turaki, Lamiso chided the PDP governors for excluding him from the contest, saying that they had breached the time-tested procedure for leadership recruitment. He threatened legal action should the party decline to sell a nomination form to him.
“They (governors) met me in PDP, for God’s sake. All of them met me in PDP. Where were they in 1998 (when the PDP was formed)? Where were they when we fought for the party all through the last 25 years? Don’t bring up issues that are very, very divisive. I don’t want to lose my composure,” Lamido fumed at the PDP National Secretariat in Abuja. He accused the PDP governors of deliberately excluding him from the chairmanship race in favour of Turaki. Dismissing Turaki’s endorsement as a consensus candidate as a ruse, Lamido vowed; “If I am not able to get the form, I will go to court. Simple”. The former governor added; “Consensus? If there are consultations, there can be consensus. But if there are no consultations, then, we are not united on board. I mean, the zone where I come from, we never met”.
He stressed: “The PDP should be able to organise its own house to run the party based on the policies of the party, doing the right thing at all times. The only way we can win is by having a party that is disciplined party. If the party is not organised, if we don’t follow our own constitution and procedures, how do we win elections?
“How will a non-united party even win elections? So, you see, my main concern is getting the PDP properly restored into a stable, united family that will be able to stay focused on the bigger picture ahead — saving Nigeria and Nigerians from the APC.”
Lamido, the former Foreign Affairs minister is one of the founders of the PDP. He was a leader of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) in the Second Republic and National Secretary of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP), the party that produced the late Chief Moshood Abiola, during the aborted Third Republic.
