Dino Melaye, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in last year’s Kogi governorship election, has openly criticized the party’s leadership, accusing key figures of leading the party to its downfall.
Melaye, a former member of the National Assembly, directed his accusations at Umar Iliya Damagum, the acting national chairman; Senator Samuel Anyanwu, the national secretary; and Umar Bature, the national organising secretary. He claimed that these individuals are responsible for what he described as the “irredeemable destruction” of the PDP.
Since his loss in the governorship election, Melaye has largely kept a low profile and has notably refrained from challenging the election results in court. However, on Saturday, he took to social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, to voice his concerns about the party’s leadership.
“End of the road for PDP as Damagum, Bature, and Anyanwu irredeemably destroyed the party. We will talk about the commercialisation and privatisation of PDP. PDP is now once upon a time,” Melaye wrote in his post.
Melaye’s comments come on the heels of allegations made by PDP lawmakers in the House of Representatives against Damagum and Anyanwu. Ikenga Ugochinyere, the spokesperson and representative of Ideato Federal Constituency, accused the two leaders of engaging in activities aimed at weakening the PDP.
The lawmakers alleged that Damagum and Anyanwu were conspiring to support defected former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly with legal backing, in what they described as a plot to impeach the Rivers State governor, Sim Fubara.
In response to these allegations, Damagum dismissed the accusations and warned that no one could force him to step down from his position.
