Five things to know about Damagum, Acting PDP chairman

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has replaced Senator Iyioricha Ayu with Amb. Umar Ililya Damagum as National Chairman.

At an emergency meeting on Tuesday, the NWC acknowledged the order of the Benue State High Court, which barred Ayu from parading himself as Chairman of the party.

The post election crisis of the party took a new dimension on Sunday when Igyorov Ward stakeholders in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State suspended Ayu over alleged anti-party activities.

Ayu’s suspension followed a vote of no confidence passed on him by his ward executives at the end of their meeting.

PDP replaces Ayu with Umar Damagum

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Ayu had described the action as an exercise in futility, saying any organ of the party or executive committee of the party at the Ward or State Level could not take any disciplinary measure against any member of the party’s National Executive Committee.

But a Benue High Court later barred him from parading himself as Chairman of the party.

Below are five things to know about the Acting chairman:

1) He was born on August 10, 1963 in Damagum (Present Fune Local Government Area of Yobe State).

2) Damagum attended Damagum Central Primary School from 1971 – 1977 and thereafter proceeded to Government College Maiduguri for his secondary school education between 1977 and 1982. He later gained an admission into Remedial Studies in the University Of Maiduguri (1982-83), where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Education (B.A. Education) In 1988. He Studied Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the same university in 2003/2004.

3) Until his appointment, Damagum was the PDP national deputy chairman (north).

4) He was a Nigerian ambassador to Romania from 2004 to 2007.

5) In 2019, he contested the gubernatorial election in Yobe state under the PDP, but lost to Mai Mala Buni of the All Progressives Congress (APC).