The National Working Committee (NWC).of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP on Thursday inaugurated a caretaker committee to manage the affairs of the party in the South South zone.
This is inspite of a court order barring the party from going ahead with the inauguration.
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja presided over by Hon Justice J.K Omotosho in a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/447/2025, and filed by Alaboh George Turnah had granted an interim injunction restraining the national leadership of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from appointing a caretaker committee to oversee the party’s affairs in the South-South Zone.
The plaintiff sought among others the court’s intervention to prevent the PDP’s national leadership from interfering with the South-South Zonal Committee’s operations, particularly in view of the re-election of Chief Dan Osi Orbih as Vice Chairman for the South-South Zone during the Calabar meeting.
The judge thereafter adjourned the case to March.18, 2025 for hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
But PDP NWC went ahead and inaugurated CTC for the South South led by Emma Ogidi.
Meanwhile, Governor of Bayelsa State, and chairman of South South PDP Governor’s Forum Senator Douye Diri, has said that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was bigger than any individual and that its internal challenges would be fixed once the members resolve to tackle them.
Speaking to journalists at the PDP national secretariat in Abuja on Thursday after the inauguration of the party’s South-South zonal caretaker committee led by Elder Emma Ogidi, the Bayelsa Governor said the political will to confront those fomenting trouble in the party resided with the members and not solely on the leadership.
Diri, stated that for the party to be competitive as the oldest in the country, it must look inwards and fix its internal issues.
He said: “For me, we have to look inwards before accusing those outside our party. We have to first fix our internal issues.
“It is very easy to point accusing fingers. But the PDP has to sit back and tackle its internal challenges. That is only when we can stand to compete with others.
Read also: Court halts inauguration of PDP South South caretaker committee
“I want the PDP to be competitive with other political parties. We are the oldest political party in Nigeria. So we have no reason to be accusing outsiders.”
On whether the party’s leadership had the political will to discipline those fomenting trouble, Governor Diri averred that such will resided with the members.
“We are all members of the party. The moment we all resolve that we need to fix our party, there cannot be any one person that is bigger than the party.”
He stressed that the newly inaugurated zonal caretaker committee had the mandate of the National Working Committee to look into every issue affecting the party in the South-South.
The Bayelsa helmsman expressed the hope that the event was a step forward for the party.
“In our zone, which is the only area in the country you have four governors of the party, we have all resolved and are together on this. You can see the deputy governor of Delta State, who represented the governor. I have also received messages from the governors of Akwa Ibom and Rivers. It shows that we are together and what we need to do is to show leadership and work with the zonal committee so that our zone will again become safe and strong for the PDP.”
