The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party has insisted that Samuel Anyanwu, an ally of FCT minister Nyesom Wike, has not been reinstated as the party’s national secretary. 

In a statement on Wednesday, the NWC also disclosed that the date for the 100th meeting of its National Executive Committee would be June 30.

“The claim by Amb. Damagum that Sen. Samuel Anyanwu has been asked to resume office as the national secretary of the party is therefore misleading, being contrary to the resolution of NEC,” said the NWC. “In the light of the foregoing, the 100th NEC meeting as scheduled for Monday, 30th June, 2025 has not been cancelled or postponed.”

This contradicts Mr Damagum’s comment at a press conference earlier in the day after a closed-door meeting with officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Mr Damagum had revealed that “Anyanwu is resuming as the national secretary” and that the difficult decision “was accepted by many members of the party led by the organs of the party.”

The NWC accused Mr Damagum of attempting to overturn the resolution of the 99th NEC meeting, “which scheduled the 100th NEC meeting for Monday, 30th June 2025,” and also “referred all matters relating to the office of the National Secretary to the 100th NEC meeting.”

According to the NWC, the pronouncements by Mr Damagum have “no foundation as no organ of the party (including the NWC), individual or group has the power to cancel, overrule, veto or vary” the resolution of the NEC under the PDP constitution, citing NEC as the highest decision-making organ of the party.

The rebuttal to Mr Damagum’s decision was jointly signed by PDP’s deputy national chairman (South), Taofeek Arapaja; acting national secretary, Setonji Koshoedo; national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba, and eight other party chieftains.