Court restrains PDP from removing Samuel Anyanwu as national secretary

A federal high court in Abuja has restrained the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from removing Samuel Anyanwu as the party’s national secretary pending the determination of a suit.

Inyang Ekwo, the presiding judge, gave the ruling on Thursday in a suit filed by two members of the PDP.

Geoffrey Ihentuge and Apollos Godspower sued the PDP, Umar Aliyu Damagun, acting national chairman; and national executive committee (NEC) as 1st to 3rd defendants.

The party’s national working committee (NWC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are 4th and 5th defendants, respectively.

The plaintiffs prayed for an order of interim injunction restraining the 1st to 4th defendants from removing Anyanwu as national secretary.

They sought an order restraining the PDP and its executives from preventing Anyanwu from discharging his functions as an elected national officer of the PDP.

They argued that article 47(1) of the PDP constitution provided for a tenure of four years for its executive committees, adding that Anyanwu was duly elected on December 10, 2021 and was entitled to remain in office till December 9, 2025.

The plaintiffs sought an order restraining INEC from recognising any purported appointment of any person as PDP national secretary, whether in acting capacity or otherwise, pending the determination of the suit.

According to NAN, the presiding judge granted the prayers and adjourned the matter until December 4.

THE CONTROVERSY

In April, Anyanwu became the PDP’s gubernatorial candidate for the November 11 election in Imo.

Some party stakeholders had called for Anyanwu’s resignation as national secretary of the party — a call he ignored.

Adolphus Wabara, acting chair of the PDP board of trustees (BoT), had asked Anyanwu to resign as the party’s national secretary after he became the governorship candidate of the PDP in the Imo poll.

But Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory (FCT), countered Wabara, saying he does not have the authority to declare who can occupy the office of national secretary of the party.

On October 20, the south-east zonal executive committee of the PDP nominated Sunday Udeh-Okoye to replace Anyanwu as the party’s national secretary.

Days later, a high court in Enugu granted an interim order directing the party to recognise Udeh-Okoye within 24 hours.

The PDP also filed a motion seeking to set aside the order recognising Udeh-Okoye as the party’s national secretary.

Anyanwu lost the Imo governorship election to Hope Uzodinma, governor of Imo.