•Jonathan
All access roads to the “A-Class” event centre in Abuja, venue of the proposed special convention for the ratification of former president Goodluck Jonathan as the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), by members of the party loyal to Tanimu Turaki, have been barricaded by the police.
The police used several of their vans to completely block the two access roads leading off from the Wuse and Maitama axis, into the premises of the event centre, reports Channels TV.
The blockage deprived access to both PDP members loyal to Turaki and other road users who have nothing to do with the planned convention.
•Turaki-led PDP members standing outside A Class Hotel, today
The development comes following yesterday’s warning to hotels and event centres by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, not to allow illegal political parties or organisations to use their resources for the sake of security in the FCT.
In response, the PDP, in a statement, accused Wike of attempting to halt its planned event.
According to the statement, the party said the management of A Class Event Centre informed it that pressure was being mounted on the venue to stop the gathering from taking place.
The PDP said it had already paid for the venue and fulfilled all conditions required for the programme.
The party also said security agencies had been notified of the convention scheduled for Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Wuse 2, Abuja.
According to the statement signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the PDP has instructed its lawyers to remind the event centre of the subsisting agreement signed with the party.
The party insisted that the convention would proceed despite what it described as intimidation.
“We are certain that Nigeria is a country governed by law, and any attempt to use force to suppress political dissent and opposition is an aberration which must be resisted by all people of good conscience,” the statement read.
