Governor Peter Mba’s Friends Group Under Fire for Hijacking Enugu PDP Ward Congress
The Enugu State PDP Ward congress held on the 27th of July was marred by controversy as reports emerged of a group called Friends Initiative Support Group for Governor Peter Mba led by Igwe Okeke Alum submitting a list of Ward executives two months before the congress. This group reportedly submitted the list to the Chief of Staff of the Enugu State Government, bypassing the official channels of the PDP.
According to the PDP constitution, it is the duty of party officials to conduct and monitor party congresses, but it seems that this was not the case in Enugu State. The Governor, in a meeting with party officials and stakeholders a day before the congress, denied instructing any group or person to compile a list of Ward executives. He instead mandated the party state executives, led by Chairman Austin Nnamani, to follow due process in electing Ward executives.
Despite the Governor’s directive, the Friends Initiative continued to collect lists in the government house, going against the Governor’s instructions as the leader of the party in the state. There are now rumors circulating that the Friends Initiative group is actually working for Governor .
Some members of the party in Nsukka , Igboetiti , Nkanu East, Enugu South etc have expressed concerns about the situation, urging the Governor to follow the party constitution to avoid a repeat of what happened in Zamfara State before the 2023 general election. In Zamfara, all PDP structures were nullified by the court due to irregularities in the party congress. These members have also stated their readiness to go to court if the party constitution is not followed in Enugu State.
