ABUJA, NIGERIA — The Peoples Democratic Party faction backed by Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has formally distanced itself from a petition challenging the re-election of Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke, declaring that the party neither filed nor authorised the legal action and threatening disciplinary measures against those responsible.
The petition, marked EPT/OS/GOV/02/2026, was reportedly filed by Adebayo Adedamola, the governorship candidate of the Kabiru Turaki faction of the PDP, against Adeleke, the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Accord Party. The petition was displayed on the notice board of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo on Monday, alongside a separate petition by the All Progressives Congress marked EPT/OS/GOV/01/2026.
Addressing journalists at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, Jungudo Mohammed, National Publicity Secretary of the Wike-backed PDP, said the party had no involvement in the case and had not sanctioned the petition. “We deem it necessary to address the world that indeed this petition does not have the blessings and support of the PDP, and in fact, this petition was not filed by the PDP,” Mohammed stated.
He explained that under Article 42 of the PDP Constitution, only the National Legal Adviser has the authority to institute legal proceedings on behalf of the party, adding that no such approval was given for the petition. “The petition does not represent an official PDP action. The PDP will not sit back and watch as people indiscriminately use the party’s name for selfish purposes,” he said.
Mohammed further disclosed that Adedamola himself had publicly distanced himself from the petition, stating during an appearance on TVC News on September 7, 2026, that he did not instruct or retain any lawyer to file a petition challenging the outcome of the election. The party challenged the lawyer purportedly responsible for filing the petition, Ochai Jacob Otokpa, to produce the authority upon which he acted. “Who instructed him? Who authorised him? And by what authority did he purport to act in the name of the PDP?” Mohammed asked.
The party called on security agencies to investigate the circumstances surrounding the preparation and filing of the purported petition and to take appropriate action against anyone found to have unlawfully impersonated the party. “We have decided to use the sledgehammer to deal with any individual, no matter how highly placed, whenever we find out that statements or positions are taken on behalf of the party without the due authority of the legitimate leadership of the party,” Mohammed warned.
The development adds another layer to the ongoing leadership crisis within the PDP, which has been divided between the Wike-backed faction and the Turaki-led group following a series of court rulings over the party’s Osun governorship nomination. The party said its Legal Department was taking immediate steps to formally withdraw the PDP’s name from the proceedings.
