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PDP Has Tolerated Wike for Too Long – Party’s Ex-Auditor Nnaji
A former National Auditor of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP,) Barr Ray Nnaji, has warned that the party has tolerated the FCT Minister Nyesom Wike for too long.
Nnaji stated this during a media interview, while offering his view on the crisis plaguing the party.
This comes amid the challenge from Wike daring any governor or leader of the PDP to publicly call him a mole.
The minister threw the challenge when he appeared on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme.
He had previously dared State governors elected under the platform of the PDP over his threat that he will put fire in their states.
Wike said he had no apology to anybody, insisting that heaven will not fall.
However, lamenting on what has become of the party, the former auditor stated that no right member of the PDP will commend what’s happening in the party, saying he doesn’t see Wike being in APC and the PDP at the same time.
Nnaji also said that the PDP wasted time in replacing its former National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, insisting that the vacuum created room for the crisis.
He said: “No right member of the PDP will commend what’s happening in the party.
“I don’t see Wike being in APC and the PDP at the same time. It’s the soul of Rivers State they are pursuing for the purposes of 2027.
“You know quite well that Wike used his power as a former governor to make sure that APC was assisted to come to power, that was why he was compensated with a ministerial appointment.
“He (Wike) wanted to pull the structure he had then into the APC. That explains why the APC dissolved its Rivers state executives, which prompted the members to go to the court.
“Wike himself, and those 25 State House of Assembly members who defected, when they found out that others weren’t following them, the problem in the state started.
“The main fact is that the acting Chairman failed to do what he ought to do. It cannot be blamed on the acting Chairman alone, it should be blamed on the Party entirely because the constitution is very clear.
“When a vacancy exists, what do you do? Of course, the constitution provided answers to all those things, but they failed to do it.
“Iyorchia Ayu was from North Central, when he left the position, Damagun came just to fill the gap.
“The party shouldn’t have wasted time in replacing Iyorchia Ayu. The party would have replaced Ayu with another person from that zone. If that would have been done, I don’t think we would have entered into this crisis.
“I don’t think it is as difficult with the party as it was with Amodu Sheriff, which ended up in the Supreme Court before the 2019 election.
“I still believe that the party will still come out of it, even though they didn’t do what they ought to have done early enough.”
On setting up a reconciliation committee, Nnaji had this to say: “I don’t know who they are reconciling with. Is it Wike or the governor?
“From the look of things, the government is not ready to play ball, when Wike wants the structure. And if you give Wike the structure, the governor becomes a follower of Wike.
“That is not what the governor wants, he’s supposed to be the leader of the party in the State and take charge.
“Wike, seeing what’s happening, believes he has done his parallel congress and produced a structure. Of course, the governor has his own structure, who the national picks will be another issue.
“I learnt Wike was invited to the disciplinary committee, I don’t know the outcome of the invitation but they waited too long to allow Wike to this point.
“He was not part of the formation of the party but he’s the most beneficiary of the PDP. Going ahead to seek the destruction of the party he has benefited a lot from doesn’t augur well for him, especially in the future.
“If he destroys PDP, who’s sure the APC will be a comfortable place for him to stay?
“I don’t think he’s thinking from that angle. It is his personal interest that matters most for him now.
“The PDP has to make sure it puts its house in order to see if it can liberate the country come 2027.”
United States Representative Riley Moors has said further military strikes against Islamic State-linked militants in Nigeria could follow recent operations ordered by President Donald Trump, describing the actions as aimed at improving security and protecting Christian communities facing violence.
Moore made the remarks during a televised interview in which he addressed U.S. military strikes carried out on Christmas Day against militant targets in North-west Nigeria.
The strikes were conducted in coordination with the Nigerian government, according to U.S. and Nigerian officials.
“President Trump is not trying to bring war to Nigeria, he’s bringing peace and security to Nigeria and to the thousands of Christians who face horrific violence and death,” Moore said.
He said the Christmas Day strikes against Islamic State affiliates had provided hope to Christians in Nigeria, particularly in areas affected by repeated attacks during past festive periods.
According to U.S. authorities, the strikes targeted camps used by Islamic State-linked groups operating in parts of north-west Nigeria.
Nigerian officials confirmed that the operation was carried out with intelligence support from Nigerian security agencies as part of ongoing counter-terrorism cooperation between both countries.
The United States Africa Command said the operation was intended to degrade the operational capacity of extremist groups responsible for attacks on civilians and security forces.
Nigerian authorities have described the targeted groups as a threat to national security, noting their involvement in killings, kidnappings and raids on rural communities.
Moore said the strikes marked a shift from previous years in which attacks were carried out against civilians during the Christmas period. He said the U.S. administration was focused on preventing further violence by targeting militant groups before they could launch attacks.
U.S. officials have said the military action was carried out with the consent of the Nigerian government and formed part of broader security cooperation between the two countries. Nigeria has received intelligence, training and logistical support from international partners as it seeks to contain militant activity.
Moore had previously called for stronger international attention to attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria and has urged continued U.S. engagement in addressing extremist violence. He said further action would depend on developments on the ground and continued coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Nigerian officials have maintained that counter-terrorism operations are directed at armed groups threatening civilians, regardless of religion, and have reiterated their commitment to restoring security across affected regions.
World-renowned boxer Anthony Joshua on Monday survived a ghastly road accident in Makun, Ogun State.
Eyewitnesses report that the incident occurred along a busy highway of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
The vehicle carrying Joshua, a Lexus Jeep with the number plate, KRD 850 HN, reportedly collided with a stationary truck under circumstances that are still being investigated.
Joshua reportedly sustained minor injuries, while two persons were said to have died on the spot.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has cautioned that any attempt to hurriedly re‑gazette Nigeria’s new tax laws could undermine parliamentary oversight and set a dangerous constitutional precedent.
Atiku’s warning follows public scrutiny over reports that the Tax Reform Acts signed by President Bola Tinubu differ from the versions passed by the National Assembly. Lawmakers, including Abdussamad Dasuki, raised concerns that the alterations could pose serious legal and constitutional risks, noting that they were not backed by any constitutional framework.
In a statement on X, Atiku said the directive to re-gazette the Acts effectively confirms “that the gazetted version of the Tinubu Tax Act does not reflect what was duly passed by the National Assembly,” calling it “a grave constitutional issue.”
He emphasized that under Section 58 of the 1999 Constitution, a bill only becomes law after passage by both chambers, presidential assent, and gazetting.
“Gazetting is merely an administrative act of publication. It does not create, amend, or validate a law,” Atiku said, adding that any post-passage insertion, deletion, or modification without legislative approval constitutes forgery rather than a clerical error.
Atiku further warned that rushing a re-gazetting while legislative investigations are ongoing “undermines parliamentary oversight and sets a dangerous precedent,” stressing that the only lawful approach is “fresh legislative consideration, re-passage by both chambers, fresh presidential assent, and proper gazetting.”
The former vice president clarified that his position is not opposition to tax reform but a defence of constitutional order.
“This is a defence of the integrity of the legislative process and a rejection of any attempt to normalise constitutional breaches through procedural shortcuts,” he said.
The Federal government has denied wrongdoing, insisting the laws will take effect as scheduled on January 1, 2026, while the National Assembly has directed the issuance of Certified True Copies of the Acts to ensure clarity and accuracy.
