Samuel Anyanwu, the factional National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, has rejected his removal from the party and described the national convention held in Ibadan on November 16 and 17, 2025, as an event that lacked proper structure. He reacted during a television interview hours after the PDP announced that he and several top members had been expelled.
Anyanwu said the convention could not be seen as valid because, according to him, many states were not represented and a large part of the South-East had not conducted the congresses required before such a gathering. He also stated that some earlier congresses had not been sent to the Independent National Electoral Commission, which in his view made the outcome unreliable. He claimed that the gathering was not broad enough to take firm decisions concerning the party.
Responding to his expulsion, he insisted that the committee that announced his removal had no legal power to do so. He explained that the group had acted against him before and that there was already a court ruling on the matter, which made the new announcement baseless in his view.
Before the expulsion notice went out, Anyanwu was serving as the suspended National Secretary of the PDP. The party had removed him along with Nyesom Wike, Kamaldeen Ajibade, Ayo Fayose, Austin Nwachukwu and others for alleged anti-party conduct during the Ibadan convention. The removal was proposed by Bode George and supported by Bauchi State PDP Chairman Samaila Buga. Governor Bala Mohammed later put the motion to a voice vote, and delegates backed it.
The decision has deepened the tension within the party, as those affected continue to challenge the process and its outcome.