The embattled National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Samuel Anyanwu, has declared himself the rightful holder of the position, insisting that no force within the party can remove him.
Speaking at the ongoing Southeast PDP Zonal stakeholders’ meeting, Anyanwu stated firmly that even powerful entities like Julius Berger cannot dislodge him from his role as the party’s National Secretary. His declaration comes amid an ongoing dispute within the PDP over who legitimately holds the National Secretary office.
Anyanwu also said he would step down only if Governor Peter Mbah and other PDP governors prove that he accepted any form of bribe or payment from them.
He challenged: “I am the only National Secretary of the PDP, and no force, not even a Julius Berger crane, can remove me from this position. I dare Governor Peter Mbah and every PDP Governor to publicly say if I have taken a bottle of water from them. If anyone does, I will resign immediately.”
This crisis stems from a disagreement between Samuel Anyanwu and Sunday Ude-Okoye over the National Secretary position.
The conflict began after Anyanwu left the position to contest the governorship election in Imo State, which he lost. Following his departure, the Southeast Caucus nominated Ude-Okoye as their candidate for the National Secretary role, causing a split within the party.
In support of Ude-Okoye, Senate Minority Whip Osita Ngwu appealed to the party leadership to respect the Southeast Caucus’s choice.
Ngwu noted, “Our prayer and appeal is that this party should carefully look into our request in line with what has been done in the past. Precedents have been set, so we are asking you to look at the zone.” He further added, “The request of this zone should not be jettisoned. We are not here to give orders, but to make an appeal so that the decision that will be taken will be for the growth of the Party.”
