Shortly after Abdulrahman Mohammed took over as Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), security personnel shut off the party’s National Secretariat at Wadata Plaza and the Legacy House in Abuja on Monday, dramatically escalating the party’s leadership crisis.
Early in the morning, heavily armed police officers rushed the Wadata Plaza headquarters, telling employees and journalists to leave before sealing the gates.
According to reports, the officers positioned themselves strategically throughout the facility to thwart any attempt at entry.
Shortly after, the PDP’s National Convention Organizing Committee headquarters, Legacy House in Maitama, was blocked off by a second security unit, essentially stopping all administrative activities at the opposition party’s two main centers.
Police officers turned away journalists who tried to enter Legacy House, claiming that the lockout was due to “orders from above.”
Panic spread across the country among party employees and members due to the abrupt security crackdown. It happened just hours after Mohammed’s contentious appointment as Acting Chairman, which has exacerbated tensions inside the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party.
The strong police presence, according to a senior party insider who spoke to Vanguard, was a preventative measure to prevent violent confrontations between rival factions.
Leadership Is Traded by Factions Days of tense negotiations and political scheming preceded Tussle Mohammed’s takeover, which was purportedly supported by a bloc within the NWC loyal to a former South-South governor. In the run-up to the general elections in 2027, his camp promised to bring stability and unity back to the PDP while accusing the previous leadership of being haughty and lacking cooperation.
But supporters of the suspended leaders have rejected his rise as “an illegal coup,” maintaining that Umar Damagum is still the PDP’s legitimate Acting Chairman.
Later in the afternoon, when PDP employees at the national secretariat staged a walkout to voice their displeasure with the situation, tensions increased.
Carrying signs, the employees declared that there was “total confusion” and that they would not go back to work until clarity was restored.
Both Wadata Plaza and Legacy House were still under lock and key as of the time of publication, and armed officers were keeping a close eye on the area.
According to sources, loyalists from both groups were convening separate emergency meetings at undisclosed Abuja sites to discuss potential reconciliation initiatives and next steps.
