Wike vs Atiku: Fresh moves to sack Damagum begin
Some members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and allies of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar have initiated new efforts to remove Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum.
According to reports, Wike and his supporters have been holding meetings in Abuja and Port Harcourt to secure what they view as a series of court wins amid the party’s internal power struggle. The group sees the scheduling of the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting for November 28 as beneficial, as it could allow Damagum more time in office.
Meanwhile, Atiku’s faction has been facing setbacks since former National Chairman Dr. Iyorchia Ayu stepped down, with ongoing delays in appointing a new chairman from the North Central region.
A decision by a Federal High Court in Abuja to restrain the NEC and the party’s Board of Trustees from removing Damagum from office has further complicated matters.
A member of the party’s NEC who spoke to Vanguard on condition of anonymity said that a team of lawyers under the guidance of two prominent Senior Advocates of Nigeria is being assembled to appeal the court order.
The party insiders stated that Damagun, for some strange reasons, has refused to convene the NEC meeting because he is eager to remain in an acting capacity.
The source added that it was out of place for the Wike camp to celebrate the latest shift in the date for the NEC meeting.
The source said, “Of course, we are appealing the court order. Go back to the resolution of our 98th NEC meeting held on April 18th. It was resolved that the NWC should conduct congresses at the relevant levels in states where the tenures of their executives have lapsed and prepare grounds for a replacement for Dr. Iyiorchia Ayu who resigned from his position.
“But for some strange reasons, Damagum has found one excuse or another to cling to power in an acting capacity by refusing to convene NEC.
“To further complicate matters, he caused his lieutenants in Yobe State, to go to court to restrain the Board of Trustees and NEC from removing him from office.
“This man is still the Deputy National Chairman (North), a position he also holds today.
“How can a man who says he has the party’s best interest at heart, go to court and tie our hands by removing one of the main items on the agenda of our NEC meeting?
We have news for him, he can’t be acting chairman in perpetuity. That judgement or whatever it is will be appealed and vacated.”