The Social Democratic Party (SDP), has, to a very large extent, enjoyed a relatively peaceful and crisis free atmosphere since it’s inception till date. Unlike most of the other registered political parties, such as the Peoples Democratic (PDP), the Labour Party (LP), the All Progressives Congress (APC) and All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), which have been bedevilled, with crises of different nature and dimensions, the case of the SDP seemingly appears to be different, writes Ada Okafor.
The SDP has always been in the news for the right reason. This has shown in the way the party has been managed so far under the national leadership since the moment it was registered or birthed.
It is a truism that no group, association or political party can actually extricate itself from or run away, completely, from crisis, dispute or disagreement, reason being that where two or more persons are gathered, there are bound to be disagreements, arising largely, from individual differences.
However, the ability to manage or resolve these crises, disputes and disagreements is what shows the maturity among members of the concerned associations or groups or parties.
In a nutshell, crisis or disagreement and the management of same is part of human endeavor.
Few days ago, the SDP, resolved to fill the three vacant positions in its National Working Committee, NWC, with a view to re-strategizing for victory ahead of the 2027 general election.
The NWC of the SDP, in line with Article 12.5 of the party’s 2022 constitution as amended, and following the mandate given to it by the National Convention of the party, filled the vacant positions of the Deputy National Chairman (South), Deputy National Chairman (North) and National Financial Secretary, yesterday.
The meeting, which was presided over by the National Chairman, Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam, filled the three positions of the Deputy National Chairman (South), Deputy National Chairman (North) and National Financial Secretary, with Senator Ugochukwu Uba, Dr. Sadiq Umar Abubakar and Mr. Hussani Ado Bello, respectively.
The trio of Senator Uba as Deputy National Chairman (South), Prof. Abubakar as Deputy National Chairman (North) and Mr. Bello, as National Financial Secretary, had become members of the party’s NWC, having been duly and validly appointed.
However, barely 24 hours after the three appointments were made, they (the appointments) were debunked and dismissed as untrue.
A counter statement issued by Chief Arinze Ekelem, National Vice Chairman (South-East) of the SDP, dismissed the media reports of the appointments of the duo of Senator Ugochukwu Uba and Dr. Sadiq Abubakar Gombe as members of its National Working Committee (NWC), saying that they were not its registered members.
Ekelem, in his statement, dismissed the report as ‘misleading and false information’ fabricated to create confusion within SDP’s folds, insisting that the duo were not its registered members and as such could not have been appointed into such sensitive and important offices as being claimed.
He urged the SDP members stakeholders as well as the members of the public to disregard what he called the ‘fake news”.
According to the statement, “the South East zone of Social Democratic Party (SDP), in totality, debunked the appointment of Dr Ugochukwu Uba as the National Deputy chairman south of the party.
“The falsehood and misleading information reported by some media outfits that one certain Ugochukwu Uba has been appointed the National Deputy Chairman south of Social Democratic Party (SDP) is false, misleading and never happened.
“We wish to state categorically and for the avoidance of doubt that Senator Ugochukwu Uba is not a card-carrying member of the SDP. Consequently, any claim regarding his appointment to any leadership position within the party is false, misleading, and does not reflect the resolutions or discussions of the meeting of the NWC.
“No such decision was taken at the meeting of the National Working Committee held on 15th May 2025 at the Party’s National Secretariat in Abuja. The alleged appointment is therefore null, void, and of no effect whatsoever, he affirmed.
“South-East SDP leadership urges party members, stakeholders, and the general public to disregard this misinformation and remain committed to the integrity, values, and due process that guide the affairs of the Social Democratic Part, he said.
The National Chairman of the Party, Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam, on his part, declared that SDP was alarmed by the purported appointments when no such has ever taken place and promised to fish out those behind those falsehood fabricated to disorganise the Party ahead of the 2027General elections
He however expressed total confidence of the Party in brilliance outings in the coming general elections based on the efforts being put in place to refloat it as available platform for Nigerians with true democratic aspirations.
However, multiple sources within the SDP confirmed that a NWC meeting of the SDP, indeed, took place where the appointment of the three new national officers were made.
One of the sources specifically confirmed that there were twelve (12) NWC members in SDP in total but one was absent, stressing that 8 out of 11 NWC members present at the meeting voted in favour of appointments.
The source added that Alhaji Shehu Gabam and two others who lost out are the ones throwing tantrums together with the immediate past Governor of Kaduna State Mallam Nasir el-Rufai who recently joined the party.
“There were 12 NWC members in total but one was absent. 8 out of 11 NWC members present at the meeting voted in favour of appointments. Gabam and two others who lost out are throwing tantrums together with Nasir El-rufai who is a nobody at his ward”, the source volunteered.
Political watchers and analysts however believe, firmly, that with the system already put in place in SDP, 1,000 el-Rufais and Shehu Gabams can not cause any crisis, that the party will not be able to resolvable.
One of the general directives to members of the SDP, finding showed, is that they must pay attention to the Nigerian constitution, particularly chapter two of the constitution, a fundamental objective and directive principle of state policy that states how Nigerians should govern themselves and avoid the misgovernance.
According to the source, “They should also pay attention to the constitution of the SDP, because we take this constitution seriously.
“The SDP is not like other parties where they are coming from, where they violate their constitutions and they can be subverted at will. In the SDP, since I joined the party, I have rarely seen any instance where any officer or institution of the party or group of members is trying to violate the constitution.
“Thirdly, they should look at the manifesto of the party. It is basically for the welfare of the people. That is why we ran on farewell to poverty and insecurity”, he said.
The SDP is known to have put in place some safety valves which are tailored towards nipping any perceived crisis in the bud, before blossoming to a level that will be difficult to tame.
An insider source, in a chat said, “Over time, generations of politicians come to the party (SDP) from other political parties and some have taken time to inculcate the ideology of the party.
“You cannot blame those who are coming, because they’re just coming and if someone is in the party for two weeks or two months, you cannot say that they have become die-in-the-wood, SDP members.
“Some of them had a different background where they’re coming from and some have entered the party initially not for ideological reasons, but just because it’s convenient, because for some politicians a political party is a transactional vehicle. They don’t believe in what the party is saying. They just think that they need a party.
“But, when we come to the party we all get tutored by what the party stands for and we all get challenged from time to time.
“So, the people who need more education than the rest are the political elites, especially the class that came into politics in 1999, who believe that politics is about what you can grab, steal and run away with and that the people don’t exist, they’re just noise in the background.
“You only need them on Election Day and all you need to do is package some money and give to them and you don’t need to bother about them after that.
“So, these people have difficulty dealing with the SDP but we believe in the redemption of everyone and we believe that if you pay attention, you can perfect it, and you can understand it because the country needs a good political party if we are going to be saved”, the source declared.
The question in the lips of most party members now is: Hope SDP hasn’t made a mistake in accepting el-Rufai into its fold? Time will tell.
