Sen. Samuel Anyanwu, the national secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has declared that he will not be stepping down in the face of demand from some party officials.
According to him, Peter Mbah of Enugu State and Seyi Makinde of Oyo State were behind a concerted effort to have him removed before the end of his term.
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Anyanwu said the unrest was politically driven and lacked constitutional basis in an interview with reporters in Abuja on Wednesday.
“There is no vacancy in the office of the National Secretary of the PDP. I remain the substantive National Secretary whose tenure runs until December 2025,” he said.
Anyanwu clarified that he has officially informed the party and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of his decision to take a leave of absence from office in order to run for governor of Imo State in 2023.
He insisted that Imo State should be the designated source of nominations for the National Secretary post, which should be zoned to the South, and more precisely, micro-zoned to the South-East.
He asked why Enugu State is being pressured to send a replacement.
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“I wrote to the party and to INEC before proceeding on leave. That letter was acknowledged. My deputy only acted on my behalf. At no time did I resign my position,” he explained.
“If the zoning principle is to be respected, any replacement must come from Imo State, not Enugu. Governor Mbah is pushing for a replacement that violates the PDP’s own zoning formula,” Anyanwu stated.
Anyanwu further claimed that Governors Makinde and Mbah conived to use illegal means, such as coercing party employees and using unapproved meeting spaces, to appoint Mr. Sunday Ude-Okoye as Secretary.
He denied accusations that he was loyal to Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory, and insisted that their friendship had never affected his commitment to the PDP.
Additionally, he denied rumours that the PDP would soon form a coalition or merge, stating that the party is not involved in any alliance negotiations.
Anyanwu cautioned that any attempt to remove him might legally nullify all PDP operations, including candidate nominations and congresses, that have taken place under his direction since November 2023.
