INEC Rejects Request by Controversial PDP Chairman, Affirms Umar Damagum’s

*Monitors Ekiti guber primary election 

Chuks Okocha in Abuja 

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),has upheld Umar Iliya Damagum as the constitutionally recognised National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), thereby dismissing  Abdulrahman Mohammed, a loyalist of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, as acting national  chairman.

INEC, in a formal acknowledgment and recognition of the Damagum-led NWC, responded to a correspondence by Damagum and deployed election monitors for the PDP governorship primaries in Ado-Ekiti.

The INEC team observed and monitored the PDP Ekiti State governorship primary election that took place on Saturday.

A faction of the party had postponed the Ekiti State gubernatorial primary earlier scheduled for Saturday, November 8th, 2025.

The party said the primary election was postponed due to logistics issues.

This was contained in a letter signed by the acting National Chairman, Abdulrahman Mohammed, and National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu.

The letter was addressed to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan.

The letter read: “We wish to inform you that the PDP Ekiti State Congress and Governorship primary slated for November 8th, 2025, has been postponed due to logistics reasons constraining this exercise.

“A new date will be formally communicated when decided. Please accept the assurances of my esteemed regards. Kindly refer to our earlier letter to the commission on this subject matter.”

By monitoring the Ekiti State PDP governorship election, INEC might have tacitly affirmed the Damagum faction as the authentic leadership of the party.