*Party chair warns nobody will take their victory and run away

*PDP declares minister on loan to APC without transfer clause

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has dared the Tanimu Turaki faction of the party that June 26 would determine the authentic PDP faction, saying “lets know who the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would give the access code to upload the nomination forms.”

By the INEC guidelines, all registered and approved political parties would be issued access code from June 26.

The Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee, said INEC Wednesday validated all the candidates contesting elections on its platform.

But Wike who spoke at the NEC meeting dared the Turaki group saying, “June 26 is around the corner. Let’s see who INEC will give the access code to upload their nominated candidates.

“Some of you pick forms from the wrong place. This is the authentic place to pick form. Let’s see what happens on June 26. Let’s see who INEC will give the access form,” he said.

According to Wike, the Turaki-led PDP operated from a hotel, but the authentic PDP operated from the registered office of the PDP.

Speaking further, Wike congratulated the party for the conduct of the primary election that was successful, but chided some politicians he described as “food is ready politicians.”

Meanwhile, the Turaki PDP has warned its candidates against defecting after securing the party’s tickets, saying those whose names would be submitted to INEC for the 2027 general election would be required to sign undertakings committing them to the party, as it confirmed former President Goodluck Jonathan as its presidential candidate.

The warning came as the opposition party presented Certificates of Return to 21 governorship candidates, declared that it had completed nominations nationwide and signalled its readiness for the 2027 elections.

Turaki said the party was determined to prevent a repeat of situations where candidates secured mandates on its platform and later defected to other parties.

“Nobody, moving forward, nobody will take our mandate to another political party and get away with it. But before we take your names to INEC, you will sign. You will sign an undertaking. What had happened before will not happen again,” Turaki said.

Speaking also, the National Organising Secretary of the PDP Interim National Working Committee, Hon. Theophilus Dakas Shan, disclosed that the PDP had nominated former President Goodluck Jonathan as its presidential candidate for the 2027 election.

“We have a presidential candidate who bought the forms, who signed it and we nominated him the other day. And that is the former president, Goodluck Jonathan,” he said.

‘Wike on Loan to APC’

In another development, the Wike faction of the PDP has pushed back against suggestions that Wike could be headed for the ruling APC, saying recent commendation from the APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, should not be mistaken for signs of an impending political transfer.

The PDP insisted that the former Rivers State governor remained firmly within its fold despite serving in President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Haruna Mohammed, the party described Wike as one of its most valuable political assets and maintained that his service in the APC-led administration had not altered his standing within the PDP.

“As Professor Yilwatda himself suggested, Barrister Wike’s engagement with the APC-led administration is best viewed as a political loan arrangement. We wish to state unequivocally that such an arrangement contains no provision whatsoever for a permanent transfer,” the party said.