A fresh disagreement has emerged within the opposition People’s Democratic Party(PDP) following a recent Court of Appeal judgment on the party’s leadership crisis.
New Telegraph gathered that while the Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde backs reconciliation with the camp of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed reportedly opposes the move.
Party sources said Makinde and members of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) are supporting a reconciliation arrangement encouraged by the Court of Appeal sort Ng in Ibadan, Oyo State, to resolve the prolonged leadership dispute.
However, Governor Mohammed, who chairs the PDP Governors Forum, is said to have rejected the initiative, insisting he cannot work with the Wike-aligned faction.
New Telegraph recalls that the PDP governors had endorsed the national convention held in Ibadan on November 15, where Tanimu Turaki and other members of the National Working Committee were elected for a four-year term.
The governors also supervised the transition of leadership from the former Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, to Turaki before Damagum’s tenure ended on December 9, 2025.
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However, a faction aligned with Wike announced the formation of a 13-member caretaker committee on December 8, 2025.
The group named Mohammed Abdulrahman as Acting National Chairman and Samuel Anyanwu as Acting National Secretary with a 60-day mandate.
Attempts by the two factions to hold separate meetings at the party’s national secretariat at Wadata Plaza on November 18, 2025, ended in chaos, with reports of disorder and physical confrontations.
The Nigeria Police Force subsequently sealed the secretariat, which has remained closed since then.
Both factions later sought recognition from the Independent National Electoral Commission, but the commission declined to recognise either group, triggering a series of legal battles as preparations for the 2027 general elections intensified.
The leadership crisis eventually reached the Court of Appeal, which heard consolidated cases on February 12 and delivered its judgment on March 9. In a ruling delivered by a panel led by Justice Mohammed Danjuma, the appellate court upheld the earlier decision of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The court held that the processes that produced the November 2025 Ibadan national convention violated the Electoral Act, the Nigerian Constitution and the PDP Constitution.
Consequently, the court nullified the outcome of the convention and declared the election of Turaki and other National Working Committee members invalid.
In a related development, Justice Biobele Georgewill, who led a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal sitting in Ibadan, granted all parties involved in the dispute permission to pursue an out-of-court settlement.
The case was adjourned indefinitely to allow the factions time to negotiate a resolution.
He said, “The Court has granted leave for settlement in this matter. Also, the case has been adjourned sine die in order to give all the parties the opportunity to meet, either individually or collectively, on how to resolve the case pending before the Appellate Court peacefully.
“All the parties involved should be mindful of the election timetable as released by INEC. The counsel of the various parties being represented here are in the best position to advise the parties they are representing.
“The court should be duly informed in writing of the decision reached, whether they agreed or disagreed on the terms of settlement. To this end, all the pending Motions on Notice in this case have been adjourned sine die.”
Lawyers representing the parties also expressed support for the court’s recommendation for settlement. Sunday Ibrahim (SAN), who spoke to reporters after the proceedings, said the parties had indicated readiness to explore reconciliation but declined to provide details.
“On that note, we make no further comment because the same may prejudice the envisioned settlement. The parties involved, during their meetings on settlement, may discuss about the INEC timetable and the rest,” he said.
Sources familiar with the discussions said Makinde and other stakeholders in the Board of Trustees meeting agreed that both factions should appoint legal teams and senior party figures to draft the terms of a reconciliation agreement that would later be submitted to the Court of Appeal for approval.
One of the sources said discussions among party leaders had already begun following a late-night meeting after the BoT gathering.
“We have made some progress. Yesterday (Tuesday), after the BoT meeting ended at night, members and leaders of the party, especially the governors and other stakeholders, reconvened around 11pm and had a moment-of-truth conversation among themselves. They told each other the truth about how to preserve the party.
“While Governor Makinde and other critical stakeholders hoped for reconciliation, Governor Bala seems uninterested in reconciling with the Wike-aligned camp.
“He expressed his view that they are not the kind of people he wants to work with. Others are still trying to persuade him to see the importance of reconciliation.
“That is why he (Bala) did not attend today’s (Wednesday) expanded BoT meeting.
“This is because he is aware of the disposition of the BoT members, Governor Makinde and others, who support reconciliation with Wike’s group. So, Governor Bala did not show up because he is not interested in reconciling with the Wike camp for now.”
Another party source said leaders of the party remain hopeful that Bala Mohammed could still be persuaded to support the reconciliation process.
“He is not keen on reconciling with the Wike group, perhaps because of events that occurred during the crisis. Party members are still trying to persuade him to see the importance of reconciliation.
“We hope and pray that he reconciles and does not withdraw because of this. Some people are still engaging with him, and as we know, 24 hours is a long time in politics — anything can happen.”
