The acting national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umar Damagum says the opposition party is not bothered by recent defections of some of its members.
Damagum spoke in Abuja on Wednesday while briefing journalists at the party’s national secretariat.
The PDP has been hit by a gale of defections in recent weeks.
The Governor of Delta, Sheriff Oborevwori joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) in April, while Umo Eno, his Akwa Ibom counterpart, moved to the ruling party in June.
Several PDP bigwigs, including Sule Lamido, former governor of Jigawa; ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar; Dele Momodu, publisher of Ovation magazine; former Senate President David Mark, among others, have joined the coalition platform and adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ahead of the 2027 elections.
‘To those that are contemplating [leaving] — they should not. They have no place, and there’s nowhere that would be as accommodating as our party’, he said.
‘But if they feel they want to [defect], I will wish them good luck. But I know they will run back’.
Damagum said the party would sanction members ‘demarketing’ the PDP.
‘I want to re-emphasise that if you are a member of the People’s Democratic Party, we are drawing a line for those who demarket the party. We are watching them and will take appropriate actions at the right time’, he said.
The PDP acting national chairman said the party remains united despite its challenges.
‘To our members, I want to bring good tidings that your party is very intact. To APC, I want to send a message that you can continue to harass and buy our members. But the 2027 election is between Nigerians and you’, he said.
‘Like I said earlier, we are not conquered. We are law-abiding citizens. We deserve to be heard. For democracy to thrive, people must say their minds. People should be listened to, and policies, I mean policies, should be people-orientated.
‘Our leaders have already come together to give us this leadership. This is what you can see in this national working committee (NWC)’.
Damagum added that the PDP has ‘mastered the art of conflict resolution’ and knows how to resolve its problems.
