Nyesom Wike has urged the leadership of his aligned faction of the Peoples Democratic Party to urgently reconnect with members who have defected and work toward rebuilding the party’s strength ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He made the appeal on Friday during a visit to the PDP National Headquarters, Wadata Plaza, Abuja, where he met members of the National Working Committee alongside factional National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu, and factional National Chairman, Abdulrahman Mohammed.
“My coming here this morning is to reassure you of my support for the members of the National Working Committee. I’ve come here to pledge my support and my loyalty to all of you.
“I also want to urge you to do what you can to bring back our members who have left the party, thinking it would not recover. Make sure you attract them back into the fold, talk to them, and send a powerful team to engage them.
“Yes, we had crisis and we have almost come out of the crisis; it is not going to be easy. It requires a lot of hard work, it requires a lot of sacrifice for you to move the party forward,” he said.
In a veiled criticism of the African Democratic Congress, Wike argued that true opposition strength is measured by electoral success rather than defections.
“You cannot become a main opposition party without winning an election. So those who say that they are leading opposition, they have never contested in any election. So, how can they be the leading opposition party?” he said.
He added that consistency in accepting defectors while criticising others for the same action is contradictory.
Wike also commended the committee for resuming operations at the party secretariat following a Federal High Court ruling that enabled their return, describing the move as a positive step toward restoring normalcy.
In response, Abdulrahman Mohammed pledged that the new leadership would reposition the party and correct past shortcomings, expressing confidence in PDP’s prospects for 2027.
He said efforts would be made to strengthen internal structures and ensure better organisation moving forward, while Samuel Anyanwu praised Wike’s support and described his visit as a gesture of humility.