A fresh leadership crisis has erupted within the Peoples Democratic Party in Ekiti State as rival groups loyal to Nyesom Wike and Taminu Turaki engage in a heated dispute over control of the party and its governorship ticket ahead of the June 20 election.
The faction aligned with Turaki has maintained that it is the lawful structure of the party in the state, naming Wole Oluyede as its candidate for the forthcoming governorship poll.
Speaking during a media briefing, the group’s State Chairman, Tunji Odeyemi, rejected the congress organised by the opposing camp, describing it as invalid and inconsistent with the party’s constitution.
Odeyemi insisted that the leadership mandate his faction obtained on October 1, 2025, remains subsisting, stressing that no judicial pronouncement has nullified it.
He further claimed that a Federal High Court judgment had validated Oluyede’s candidacy and instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission to accord him recognition, thereby resolving prior disagreements.
The faction also accused the rival camp of undermining the party’s electoral readiness, alleging that its actions were aimed at creating internal instability.
In response, the Wike-backed group denied the assertions, insisting that the party in Ekiti had not officially produced any governorship candidate.
Its State Chairman, Lanre Omolase, argued that a Court of Appeal ruling which upheld the Abduraham Mohammed-led National Caretaker Committee had addressed all lingering leadership disputes, adding that Oluyede was not recognised by any legitimate organ of the party.
kiti PDP feud escalates as rival camps dispute leadership, governorship ticket
A fresh leadership crisis has erupted within the Peoples Democratic Party in Ekiti State as rival groups loyal to Nyesom Wike and Taminu Turaki engage in a heated dispute over control of the party and its governorship ticket ahead of the June 20 election.
The faction aligned with Turaki has maintained that it is the lawful structure of the party in the state, naming Wole Oluyede as its candidate for the forthcoming governorship poll.
Speaking during a media briefing, the group’s State Chairman, Tunji Odeyemi, rejected the congress organised by the opposing camp, describing it as invalid and inconsistent with the party’s constitution.
Odeyemi insisted that the leadership mandate his faction obtained on October 1, 2025, remains subsisting, stressing that no judicial pronouncement has nullified it.
He further claimed that a Federal High Court judgment had validated Oluyede’s candidacy and instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission to accord him recognition, thereby resolving prior disagreements.
The faction also accused the rival camp of undermining the party’s electoral readiness, alleging that its actions were aimed at creating internal instability.
In response, the Wike-backed group denied the assertions, insisting that the party in Ekiti had not officially produced any governorship candidate.
Its State Chairman, Lanre Omolase, argued that a Court of Appeal ruling which upheld the Abduraham Mohammed-led National Caretaker Committee had addressed all lingering leadership disputes, adding that Oluyede was not recognised by any legitimate organ of the party.
