The Plateau State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been thrown into fresh turmoil after a faction aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, elected Peter Tongshep as the state chairman of the party on Tuesday.
Mr Tongshep emerged alongside 38 other members of the state executive committee at what the faction described as a consensus congress held in Jos.
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The organisers said the exercise was peaceful and conducted under tight security.
They also claimed the congress was supervised by a seven-member delegation of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
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The event drew several prominent members of the Wike-aligned bloc, including former sports ministers Damishi Sango and Musa Azi, as well as Sarpiya Danyaro and Aminu Zang. Members of the party’s Board of Trustees, Timothy Golu, and former lawmaker Johnbul Shekarau, were also present, according to the organisers.
The development comes amid persistent calls for reconciliation within the Plateau PDP, as rival factions jostle for control of the party’s structure, amid a lingering leadership crisis at the national level.
Speaking after the congress, Samaila Rukuba, who identified himself as the newly elected PDP spokesperson in the state, described the exercise as “very peaceful and orderly.”
He said with the conclusion of the state congress, attention had shifted to the party’s national convention scheduled for March 29 in Abuja. Mr Rukuba urged party members in the state to embrace reconciliation and focus on reclaiming what he called the party’s “runaway mandate.”
However, the official Plateau State chapter of the PDP swiftly rejected the development, dismissing reports of a fresh state congress as false.
In a statement signed by its state publicity secretary, Choji Felix, the party described the reports as “baseless fabrications” allegedly orchestrated by mischief-makers.
The statement stated that the current state executive committee, led by Raymond Dabo, emerged from a peaceful and transparent elective congress held on October 25, 2025, which produced the chairman and 38 other executives.
According to the party, the exercise was monitored by INEC and conducted in full compliance with the PDP constitution and the Electoral Act.
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“Our great party wishes to explicitly inform its teeming members, stakeholders and the general public that it has absolutely no reason, intention or plan to substitute or conduct a fresh state congress to replace the duly elected chairman alongside 38 other executive members,” the statement said.
It added that the current executive committee’s tenure runs until 2028 and that there is no official communication to the contrary.
The party also warned those behind what it described as rumours and reaffirmed its readiness to participate in the 2026 local government elections under PLASIEC, as well as the 2027 general elections.
