INEC rejects PDP’s NEC meeting notice, says signature requirement not met

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says the notice it received from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of its 100th national executive council (NEC) meeting did not comply with regulations.

In a letter dated May 30, the PDP informed the electoral body of its intention to hold the NEC meeting at its national secretariat in Abuja on June 30.

The notice, signed solely by Umar Damagum, the party’s acting national chairman, was in accordance with INEC’s 21-day notification requirement for political meetings of such magnitude.

However, in a letter dated June 13 and addressed to the party’s chairman, INEC said the notice of the meeting failed to comply with its regulations.

The commission said the notice of the proposed NEC meeting ought to have been jointly signed by the party’s national chairman and secretary.

“The Commission draws your attention that the notice is not in compliance with the requirement of part 2(12)3 of the Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties, 2022 that provides the National Chairman and National Secretary of the Party shall jointly sign the notice of convention, congress, conference or meeting and submit same to the Commission,” the letter reads.

There has been a tussle within the PDP over the position of national secretary, with Samuel Anyanwu and Sunday Udeh-Okoye laying claim to the seat.

In December 2024, the court of appeal ruled that Udeh-Okoye should replace Anyanwu as the PDP national secretary.

The south-east zonal executive committee of the party nominated Udeh-Okoye to replace Anyanwu after he became the PDP gubernatorial candidate in Imo state in 2023.

Anyanwu had obtained several court injunctions to prevent his removal from office.

However, in a verdict delivered on December 20, 2024, Ridwan Abdullahi, the appeal court judge, dismissed the high court’s judgment, which prevented Anyanwu’s removal, for “lacking in merit”.

Following the judgment, Udeh-Okoye said he is the party’s national secretary.

However, Anyanwu claimed he appealed the judgment and filed for a stay of execution at the supreme court the same day the appeal court delivered the verdict in favour of Udeh-Okoye.

In March, the supreme court, in its verdict delivered by a five-member panel, held that the debate over the position is an internal affair not subject to adjudication.