A fresh battle line has been drawn in the PDP as the party’s Turaki-led faction accuses FCT Minister Nyesom Wike of threatening to shut down A Class Event Centre in Abuja if it hosts their planned presidential candidate ratification ceremony for former President Goodluck Jonathan.
In a statement issued Friday, May 29, the Interim National Working Committee said the management of A Class Event Centre, Wuse 2, informed them of “pressure being mounted” on the venue.
The faction quoted proprietors as saying Wike threatened to close the facility if PDP was allowed to hold its convention there.
“We have been informed by the proprietors of A Class Event Centre of the threat by the Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, to shut down their business premises if the Peoples Democratic Party is allowed to use their hall for our presidential candidate ratification ceremonies,” the statement signed by National Publicity Secretary Ini Ememobong read.
The faction insists all requirements were met. They said they paid in full, fulfilled the agreement, and notified security agencies ahead of the Saturday, May 30, 2026 convention.
Lawyers have also been directed to remind the venue of the subsisting contract.
“We are certain that Nigeria is a country governed by law, and any attempt to use force to suppress political dissent and opposition is an aberration which must be resisted by all people of good conscience,” the statement added.
FCTA’s Warning, Not a Direct Quote
Wike has not released a personal statement confirming a direct threat to A Class. But the Federal Capital Territory Administration, under his watch, issued a directive Friday warning event centres and hotels against hosting “illegal organisations”.
It threatened to revoke land titles of defaulting properties and told owners to deal only with INEC-recognised party leaderships.
Wike’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications, Lere Olayinka, dismissed the planned ratification as “drama” and urged facility owners to consider legality before renting out halls.
PDP Divided over Jonathan
The crisis stems from competing claims within PDP. The Turaki faction wants to ratify Jonathan as the party’s 2027 presidential candidate.
The Wike-backed faction has already adopted Senator Sandy Onor and says no convention has been approved by the recognised leadership.
With the convention slated for Saturday, both sides are digging in. PDP says the event will proceed “despite the alleged intimidation”, while FCTA’s directive puts every venue owner on edge.
For now, the question is whether A Class opens its doors or shuts them and whether Wike’s warning was about Jonathan, or about who gets to speak for PDP.
