Kabiru Turaki, national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has assumed office after a standoff at the party’s secretariat in Abuja.
The PDP headquarters was the theatre of chaos as rival factions battled for control of Wadata Plaza.
Speaking to journalists on Monday, Turaki accused the expelled faction aligned with Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory (FCT), of storming the secretariat with hired thugs to block the lawful meeting of the new national working committee (NWC).
“For the past seven hours, Nigerians are living witnesses to the struggle we’ve been engaged in with those renegade members of our party that were expelled at our national convention in Ibadan,” he said.
“They came here with armed thugs that we did predict would disrupt our meetings, but God so kind, we were able to contain them effectively.”
He said his camp ultimately regained access to the secretariat after a “coordinated attempt” to stop the newly elected leadership from taking charge.
“Now, we have driven them out of the secretariat, and, as you can see, I have entered my office; I have assumed leadership as the elected chairman,” he said.
“But I want to call on the President. If there is anybody that wants peace in any given society, it should be the leadership.”
Turaki condemned the role he claims was played by the FCT minister, alleging that Wike encouraged the disruption.
“The kind of conduct that the minister of the FCT has put in himself, engaged in this morning leading to this afternoon, is unbecoming,” he said.
“How can the serving minister lead thugs to come and disrupt a legally arranged meeting?”
Turaki said the disruption continued despite prior notification to the police and other security agencies about the meeting.
He added that the confrontation could have turned deadly, saying his supporters were shot at with multiple tear-gas canisters.
“If we had not exercised restraint, if we had not controlled our members and our leaders, there would have been bloodshed here,” Turaki said.
“We have been tear-gassed, and I think more than 50 canisters of tear gas had been shot at us. But we remained relentless and will continue to remain relentless.”
Turaki insisted the PDP under his leadership remains committed to defending democracy, even at personal risk.
“We will defend democracy; we shall continue to act as the vanguards of democracy,” he said.
He warned that any further attempts to obstruct the party’s lawful activities would prompt a nationwide mobilisation of PDP members.
“I call on all members of PDP all over this country to know that this is what is happening. And should this continue, I will not hesitate to call all members of PDP in Nigeria to assemble here,” he said.
Turaki praised party members for remaining calm despite what he called extreme provocation.
The PDP chair also reaffirmed his resolve to protect the integrity of the party against any attempts to undermine its leadership.
He thanked journalists for witnessing the events firsthand and urged them to report the situation accurately.
“I have taken over my office, and PDP is back on course,” he said.
The PDP has been mired in crisis for the better part of two years.
On Saturday, a faction of the party held a convention in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, amid conflicting court rulings.
At the Ibadan convention, Wike and his allies were expelled from the party.
However, Wike’s group dismissed the convention as a charade and the expulsion as a joke.
