Nigeria’s main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suspended its Anambra governorship flagbearer Jude Ezenwafor for one month on Tuesday, pinning the blame on his alleged sabotage that doomed the party’s bid in the November 8 election and left it scraping a humiliating fourth-place finish with just 1,401 votes.
The decision, ratified at a tense State Executive Committee (SEC) session in Awka, stems from a damning review of Ezenwafor’s “uncooperative and destructive” campaign, where he reportedly shunned rallies, colluded with rivals and mustered a single vote in his home ward of Nnobi Ward 3, Idemili South.
State chairman Chidi Chidebe, reading the suspension order, lambasted Ezenwafor’s tenure as a betrayal of party trust, declaring: “His establishment of a parallel gang of impostors, mostly non-members of the PDP, to unlawfully interfere with and perform party functions.”
Chidebe didn’t hold back on the electoral carnage, adding: “This abysmal performance represents the worst result for PDP in any ward across the state and clearly exposes his lack of character, credibility, and commitment to both the party and the election.”
The SEC escalated the matter by referring Ezenwafor to the State Disciplinary Committee for deeper scrutiny, while notifying the National Working Committee (NWC) to bar him and his allies from party access. “In light of the above and after due deliberation, the SEC resolved that Mr Jude Ezenwafor is hereby suspended from the PDP for a period of one month with immediate effect. That he be referred to the State Party Disciplinary Committee for further investigation and appropriate recommendations,” Chidebe announced, framing the purge as a shield against internal rot.
Ezenwafor’s ouster caps a dismal showing where APGA’s incumbent Chukwuma Soludo romped to 422,664 votes, the APC tallied 99,445 and even the Labour Party edged PDP with 10,505. The party, opting against legal challenges, vowed a reset under national chair Umar Damagum.
Chidebe rallied the faithful, insisting: “We are determined to rebuild and reposition the party under the leadership of Amb. Umar Damagum.”
The move signals PDP’s zero-tolerance pivot in Anambra, a South-East bastion where it has struggled against APGA’s stranglehold, as whispers of broader purges loom ahead of 2027’s national showdown.
