Despite the ruling by the Supreme Court this Friday declaring Senator Samuel Anyanwu as the authentic National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party has insisted that Sunday Udeh-Okoye remains the party’s National Secretary.
A statement by Its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba said the decision is in line with the Supreme Court ruling, which affirmed that party leadership positions are entirely internal affairs.
The statement made it clear that the PDP has already chosen Udeh-Okoye as its secretary, and the decision has been ratified through the internal mechanism of the PDP statutory Organs and bodies in line with provisions of the PDP Constitution (as amended in 2017).
It argued that the ruling of the apex court only affirms what the party has already done and so Udeh-Okoye, not Anyanwu, remains the PDP National Secretary.
The statement which confirmed that the PDP is in receipt of the Supreme Court judgement, commended the apex court for upholding the principle of the supremacy of the Party in the management of its internal affairs and described it as a victory for democracy.
“The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has received the Judgment of the Supreme Court which affirmed that the issue of Party leadership positions, including that of the National Secretary is entirely an internal affair of the Party requiring only the Party internal mechanism to which the courts have no jurisdiction.
“Today’s judgment of the Supreme Court reaffirms the standing position of the Party and emphatically settles the emergence of Rt. Hon. SKE Udeh Okoye as the substantive National Secretary of the PDP having been duly nominated, endorsed and ratified through the internal mechanism of the PDP statutory Organs and bodies in line with provisions of the PDP Constitution (as amended in 2017).
“For clarity, the NWC at its 576th meeting held on the 11th of October, 2023, directed the South East Zonal Executive Committee to nominate a replacement for Senator Samuel Anyanwu upon Senator Anyanwu’s nomination as the governorship candidate of the PDP to contest the November 2023 Governorship election in Imo State.
“Consequent upon the directive of the NWC, the South East Zonal Executive Committee at its meeting held on the 20th of October 2023 passed a resolution approving the emergence and forwarding of the name of Rt. Hon. SKE Udeh Okoye to the NWC as the National Secretary of the Party.
“Accordingly, the NWC at its 577th meeting held on 7th of November 2023 pursuant to its powers under the PDP Constitution, duly received, deliberated upon, accepted and approved the emergence of Rt. Hon. SKE Udeh Okoye as the National Secretary of the Party, which appointment has also since been endorsed by relevant Organs and bodies of the PDP including the Board of Trustees (BoT), South East Zonal Caucus, the PDP Governors’ Forum and officially communicated to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the general public.
“The PDP commends the Supreme Court for upholding the principle of the supremacy of the Party in the management of its internal affairs, describing it as victory for democracy.
“The NWC urges all patriotic members of the PDP to remain united as we work together to move our great Party forward,” the statement read.
A 5-man panel of the Supreme Court led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji had this Friday morning set aside the December 20, 2024, judgment of the Court of Appeal in Enugu, which had upheld the High Court’s decision removing Anyanwu and recognizing Sunday Udeh-Okoye as his replacement.
Dissatisfied with the appellate court’s ruling, Anyanwu took the matter to the Supreme Court, arguing that both the Court of Appeal and the Enugu High Court lacked jurisdiction to decide on an issue concerning the internal affairs of the PDP. He maintained that party leadership and membership matters are non-justiciable and should not be determined by any court.
Anyanwu had challenged the interpretation of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022 by the lower courts, asserting that he neither resigned nor was removed from office as National Secretary.
He also pointed out that the PDP constitution clearly outlines procedures for vacating executive positions, and there was no legal basis for the courts’ conclusion that he had left office, arguing that Article 47 of the PDP constitution provides for a single four-year term for party officers.
Recall, Udey-Okoye had received the backing of the PDP’s National Working Committee, Board of Trustees, and Governors’ Forum.
