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Members of the National Working Committee, NWC, of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, are currently meeting in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
The meeting, which is being held behind closed doors at the party’s national headquarters, is presided over by the PDP National Chairman, Umar Damagum.
This comes two days after the Supreme Court dismissed a motion for a stay of execution of a High Court judgment removing Senator Samuel Anyanwu from office as National Secretary and replacing him with Sunday Udeh-Okoye.
There was a heavy presence of security personnel, including operatives from the Department of State Services, DSS, the police, and the Civil Defence Corps, at the PDP headquarters in Abuja.
Earlier, party staff clashed with thugs and some members loyal to the embattled PDP National Secretary.
A PDP staff member who witnessed the clash and requested anonymity told journalists that the scuffle began when supporters of Samuel Anyanwu entered the party premises.
According to him, the pro-Anyanwu supporters attempted to lock out some members of the PDP National Working Committee who were arriving for their usual midweek meeting. However, they were overpowered by staff, private security guards, and some police officers attached to the secretariat.
The incident led to the deployment of additional security personnel to prevent a further breakdown of law and order.
The Senate on Tuesday directed the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to conduct by-elections to fill the vacant seats in Anambra South and Edo Central Senatorial Districts.
The President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, issued the directive during plenary while officially declaring the seats vacant.
INEC had, in January 2025, stated that it was awaiting a formal request from the Senate before proceeding with by-elections, particularly for Anambra South, which has remained vacant since 2024.
The vacancy in Anambra South Senatorial District arose following the death of Senator Ifeanyi Ubah of the All Progressives Congress, APC, on 27 July 2024. Meanwhile, the election of Senator Monday Okpebholo as the Edo State governor in 2024 resulted in a vacancy in Edo Central senatorial district.
Ubah reportedly died of cardiac arrest in London at the age of 52, two days after departing Nigeria for the United Kingdom on 25 July.
