Police Block Venue as PDP Faction Ratifies Goodluck Jonathan as Presidential Candidate

Police on Saturday blocked access to the venue of a convention called by a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party to ratify former President Goodluck Jonathan as its sole presidential candidate for the 2027 elections.

Officers barricaded roads leading to the A-Class Park and Event Centre in Wuse 2, Abuja, telling reporters the event had been cancelled. The faction, led by Kabiru Turaki, SAN, swiftly moved the convention to an alternate venue in Area 10, Abuja.

‘We Won’t Be Intimidated’

Turaki declared the convention would proceed despite the police action. “No matter how highly opinionated they may be,” he said, “Nigeria is bigger than anybody. We will not fight. The time of fighting will come when we meet at the polls.”

The faction’s spokesman, Ini Ememobong, said the group had furnished all necessary documentation and insisted the special convention would hold as scheduled. Jonathan was eventually declared the faction’s candidate in absentia.

Wike’s FCTA Directive

The police action followed a directive from the Federal Capital Territory Administration, led by Minister Nyesom Wike, ordering event centres and hotels to only deal with the INEC-recognised PDP leadership or face revocation of their title documents.

Former Information Minister Prof Jerry Gana expressed dismay at the situation. “It is with great pain that I see this situation,” he said. “After so many years of democracy, we are still being reduced to this.”

The Wike-backed PDP faction, led by Abdulraman Mohammed, dismissed the convention as illegitimate, describing it as “false and misleading.” Their own consensus candidate for the 2027 ticket is Senator Sandy Onor.

Sources: TheCable, Vanguard, The Whistler