The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has resolved to remove IIiya Umar Damagum as the party’s acting National Chairman.
This was announced on Tuesday by Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, hinting that the next chairman of the party will be from the North Central region of the country.
This decision automatically disqualifies Damagum who is from Yobe State, northeastern region.
Damagum is a loyalist of the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
He started having issues with the party’s stakeholders and governors when he handed over the party’s structure in Rivers State to Nyesom Wike.
The governors had in their separate resolutions after their meetings in Enugu and Taraba states, resolved to engage the Damagum-led National Working Committee (NWC) to revisit the party’s congresses in Rivers State to ensure that Governor Siminalayi Fubara took over the control of the party’s structure.
State governors in Nigeria are by tradition the leaders of their political parties in their respective states.
But the Damagum-led leadership flouted this tradition, snubbed the governors and recognised the congresses held by Wike’s loyalists.
The PDP Governors’ Forum chairman revealed further that Damagum’s leadership is in contravention of the party’s constitution and removing him would bring back justice and fairness to the party.
He said: “On the summary of our discussion and on what is on the table in the country, about the change of leadership to get a permanent leadership in the party because right now our brother from the Northeast is acting as the acting chairman and it is a constitutional variation because according to our constitution, any vacancy that exists must be filled from anywhere that vacancy is created.
“And we know the North Central has been craving for it and we discuss the issue and we will work with the acting national chairman, the working committee and the party to ensure that the North Central is given the opportunity to assume that responsibility.”