The Opposition Lawmakers Coalition has raised an alarm over an impending mass defection of 40 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers and two state governors, urging the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) to expel Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike, Acting National Chairman Umar Damagun, and National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu to salvage the party’s crumbling fortunes.

Speaking during a constituency briefing on Tuesday, coalition spokesperson and House of Representatives member Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere (Ideato Federal Constituency, Imo State) accused the trio of orchestrating the PDP’s decline into a “political dog that barks without biting.” He warned that the party risks total collapse unless immediate action is taken to oust the “impostors” and restore its founding principles.

Ugochinyere lamented that PDP leaders had ignored repeated calls to address Damagun’s “illegal” occupation of the acting chairmanship position and Wike’s alleged sabotage while serving in President Bola Tinubu’s government.

“For two years, Damagun and Anyanwu had decimated the party. They’ve allowed APC infiltration, supported defectors in court, and enabled Wike to dine with APC while clinging to PDP membership. How can our faith be in God’s hands when these men are destroying us?” he fumed.

The coalition demanded Damagun’s immediate replacement with a substantive chairman from the North-Central zone, in line with the party’s zoning formula, and the expulsion of Wike for “anti-party treachery.”

Ugochinyere criticized PDP governors and stakeholders for prioritizing “holidays and excuses” over crisis resolution, citing delays in convening NEC meetings under frivolous pretences like Salah, Easter, Christmas or public holidays.

“If our founding fathers – Alex Ekwueme, Solomon Lar, Adamu Ciroma – were alive today, they’d weep at how the once mighty PDP has become a shadow of itself.