Damagum Explains Why He Avoided Punishing PDP Members

National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Umar Damagum, says he deliberately avoided punishing erring party members to preserve unity and peace within the party.

Speaking at the PDP Board of Trustees meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, Damagum said every compromise he made was in the party’s best interest, not out of weakness or favouritism.

He said that when he assumed office as acting chairman, the PDP was deeply divided by mistrust and suspicion following the 2023 elections, and his priority was to reconcile members rather than seek revenge.

“I realised that what our party needed most was reconciliation, not vengeance,” he said. “Some believed I was taking sides because I refused to punish certain people, but every decision I took was for the survival of the party.”

Damagum also confirmed that despite previous legal challenges, the party’s elective national convention will hold in 2025, following a court ruling by Justice Akintola affirming the PDP’s right to conduct its internal democratic processes.

He praised the judge for his courage, describing the ruling as a victory for democracy at a time when the judiciary faces pressure and intimidation.

The PDP chairman called for a new National Working Committee made up of credible and courageous individuals who can rebuild the party’s structures, attract new members, and strengthen its role as Nigeria’s leading opposition.

He stressed that the PDP must stand firm against external interference and threats to national sovereignty, saying, “I chose the party, not individuals or factions. The PDP must endure beyond us all.”