PDP factions reject Pantami, nominate separate candidates for Gombe governorship.

A new crisis has arisen within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe State, as two opposing factions have each announced a different candidate for the 2027 governorship election.

The faction headed by Tanimu Turaki has nominated Mohammed Yayari as its candidate. Yayari received his Certificate of Return in a ceremony on Wednesday, alongside other candidates from various states.

During the event, party leaders emphasized the importance of loyalty and cautioned against defecting after winning a nomination.

PDP senior figure Ibrahim Turaki declared, “Nobody will take our mandate to another political party and get away with it,” and added that future candidates would sign agreements before their names are submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The party’s National Organising Secretary, Theophilus Shan, said, “We are ready to go into the elections prepared with our candidates.”

In contrast, another PDP faction convened a separate National Executive Committee meeting in Abuja, where former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Pantami was formally presented as the party’s governorship candidate for Gombe State.

The rival group, led by Abdulrahman Mohammed, also issued Certificates of Return to candidates it claimed had been recognized and published by INEC.

Pantami’s nomination has intensified the leadership dispute within the PDP in Gombe, leaving both factions supporting different candidates for the same governorship ticket ahead of the 2027 election.