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Tag: Kano

  • Anxiety in Kano, Sokoto, Plateau, Bauchi, Benue

    Voters in parts of Kano, Sokoto, Plateau, Benue and Bauchi are heading back to the polling centres today eager to end days of apprehension caused by the March 9 inconclusive governorship and state assembly elections.

    Although, the elections will take place in only a few parts of the affected states, the security agencies are leaving nothing to chances.

    The Police yesterday announced a total restriction of vehicular and human movement in Kano and Plateau states.

    Security is also being beefed up at flashpoints in Benue State with a view to protecting lives property and electoral materials.

    Soldiers in Sokoto State extended their “Show of Force Exercise” to six violence-prone local government areas of the state ahead of the supplementary election.

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Bauchi State, which had threatened to boycott the election, announced that it was now ready for the election while the All Progressives Congress (APC) strongman in Benue State, Senator George Akume, boasted that nothing would save Governor Samuel Ortom from losing the election.

    In Kano State, 128,324 voters will decide the fate of the incumbent Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of the APC and Abba Kabir Yusuf of the PDP in the supplementary polls in the state.

    They will vote at 207 polling units spread across 28 local government areas.

    Tension remained thick in the air last night as residents prayed for the election to come and go peacefully.

    Governor Ganduje urged residents to remain calm and expect nothing short of victory for his party.

    He said the PDP candidate and his supporters would be shocked today by the turn of events against them.

    Ganduje further warned that the state government would not tolerate any breach of peace under whatever guise, assuring that his government would not fold its arms and watch people instigate instability.

    According to him, “as the governor of Kano State and the chief security officer of the state, I cannot sleep if any drop of blood is wasted. Brandishing of harmful objects is also abhorred by my administration.

    The PDP governorship candidate, Abba Kabir Yusuf was equally optimistic of carrying the day. His spokesperson, Sanusi Bature Dawakin-Tofa said: “We are known to be peace lovers and so we shall remain, as we are very sure of victory during the rerun.

    “Our supporters should not forget that PDP is already leading in the last count of the election and interestingly, the rerun would take place in the strongest areas of our party.

    “We urge everyone to keep hope alive in our quest to rescue Kano from the hands of corrupt leaders and agents of distraction.”

    The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Prof. Riskuwa Shehu Arabi, said three additional RECs from Zamfara, Kebbi and Ogun states had been deployed to Kano to ensure a successful exercise.

    He said: “We are working to make sure that we don’t have any distraction. We have held series of meetings with stakeholders to review our strategies.

    “We have also held meetings with leaders of both political parties, and we have made them to understand that the election is not a war.

    “They have also promised to talk to their supporters to conduct themselves in peaceful manner. Securities agencies have assured us of adequate security.

    “I am sure the Commissioner of Police has been talking to different groups of people, particularly the youths. I am very confident we will have a peaceful election on Saturday.”

    Police Commissioner Mohammed Wakili warned trouble makers to steer clear of the polling centres.

    “I warn that no one should test our might because we would not hesitate to clampdown on anyone who tries to disturb the peace enjoyed in the state,” he said.

    He asked parents, traditional leaders as well as political leaders to ensure that their wards and supporters conduct themselves in a responsible manner during the supplementary elections.

    The Police Command warned that there would be no vehicular or human movement in all the 44 local government areas of the state from 6am to 6pm today.

    It said: “No vehicle, motorcycle or tricycle will be allowed to move between 0600hrs and 1800hrs on that day. Eligible voters are advised to take a walk to their polling stations. Inconvenience regretted, please.”

     

    Restrictions in Plateau too

    The Plateau State Police Command also imposed total restriction of movement of persons and vehicles in all parts of the state from 6:00am to 6:00pm today during the supplementary elections.

    The Command said in a statement that it was committed to ensuring that the people of the state exercise their franchise without fear of molestation.

    It said the restriction was aimed at preventing the movement of people from local governments where elections will not be held into areas where election would be taking place to ferment trouble.

    It stated that security personnel will be deployed to enforce the restriction order and urged the people of the state to be law abiding and cooperate with security personnel to ensure the success of the electoral process.

    Read also: Rerun polls: Tambuwal, Aliyu, Ganduje,Yusuf, others locked in fierce battle

    Army extends show of force to six violence-prone LGAs in Sokoto

    The Nigeria Army yesterday extended its “Show of Force Exercise” to six violence-prone local government areas in Sokoto State ahead of the supplementary elections.

    The affected local government areas are Raba, Kebbe, Gada, Goronyo, Sabon Birni and Isa.

    Addressing the motorcade before taking off from Sokoto, Maj.-Gen. Hakeem Otiki, General Officer Commanding (GOC), 8 Division of the Army, said the exercise was to arouse public attention to the presence of the military.

    Otiki explained that the exercise was not meant to intimidate the public, but to express army readiness to curtail any form of public disturbance.

    He said further that the exercise would also serve as warning to hoodlums and other disgruntled elements that might plan or intend to disrupt the upcoming supplementary elections.

    The GOC added that similar exercise was conducted for hours in Sokoto metropolis on Thursday and urged the people to cooperate with law enforcement agencies in ensuring peaceful coexistence in the country.

    Bauchi PDP backpedals, to participate in supplementary polls

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Bauchi State, which had threatened to boycott the supplementary polls, said yesterday that it was ready for the election.

    The party says it is well prepared as it urged voters to come out en masse to exercise their civic right.

    Addressing reporters in Bauchi, the Chairman of the party, Alhaji Hamza Koshe Akuyam said: “You know we are leading. As it is now, what we want to do now is to cap it up. Insha Allah, by tomorrow (today), even if the Inspector General of Police comes to Bauchi, the people of Bauchi will still decide who they want.

    “We are good to go. PDP is not afraid of election, and more so, we have won this election and we will continue to win”

    Alhaji Akuyam said the party remained committed to the peaceful conduct of the re-run elections.

    They had threatened not to participate in the supplementary election after the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, released the date for the rerun.

    Akuyam had told reporters: “The supplementary election is a sham. INEC wants to conduct rerun because 22, 759 people were disenfranchised in 15 LGAs. Meanwhile 139,240 were disenfranchised in Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area.

    “I don’t know what INEC is up to. Maybe they are reading somebody’s script. We are not going to participate in this election.

    “Our legal team will look at this matter, though it is not just about going to court.”

    INEC on why there will be no election in Tafawa Balewa LGA

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said yesterday that supplementary election would not take place in Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State today owning to an ongoing court case.

    Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said on Channels Television that the commission would conduct the poll in other affected areas of the state.

    “We are going to conduct an election in Bauchi tomorrow (today) except in Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area because of the court action instituted by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate,” he said.

    He expressed displeasure at the rate at which politicians were filing litigations in court, and appealed to them to accept the outcome of election whether they lose or win in the contest.

    Oyekanmi said: “As a law-abiding agency, we have to comply with the order. But we are challenging that order. People will be confused as to what is going on.”

     

    Bauchi Finance Commissioner resigns hours to supplementary poll

    The Bauchi State Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Hon. Garba Sarki Mohammed Akuyam, resigned unexpectedly yesterday, 24 hours to the supplementary election.

    He said he was leaving on account of “recent developments and political realities of present day Bauchi State.”

    He added: “”During my stay in office as Commissioner for Rural Development and thereafter Commissioner for Finance for a period of almost two and half years, I in all honesty enjoyed working with your Excellency, who has always given me regard, respect and fatherly advice. Indeed, the gesture is of course reciprocal.

    “Therefore it is my privilege and singular honour to most sincerely register my appreciation for the recognition accorded me by his Excellency, Governor Mohammed Abubakar, to serve his government and the good people of Bauchi State as a commissioner, promising to answer another call to serve my dear state ever when called upon to do that in another capacity as the need may perhaps arise.”

    Garba Sarki, who was the Director General of the campaign team of Bauchi State Governor, Mohammed Abubakar in 2015, added that he remains in the ruling APC.

    Ortom will lose, Akume vows

    The APC leader in Benue State, Senator George Akume, was confident that Governor Samuel Ortom would lose today.

    Speaking with our correspondent, Akume, a former governor of the state said: “Find out from this man (Ortom) precisely what are your achievements? Sometimes I look at this and laugh because one of the achievements he claims is a private initiative in my village, a privately-owned soya processing factory.

    “Those who go to Benue will weep for that state. This is a state that has all the potentials of feeding the entire West Africa sub region.

    “Recently I heard that he bought 50 tractors to distribute to farmers and what is 50 tractors?

    “When I went to Government House during President Buhari’s visit, I saw ten tractors and I don’t know whether it is just for show man ship but when Sokoto bought 2000 tractors over two years ago, Kebbi got 1,500.

    “The Benue farmer is very hard working, the Benue man is an intelligent person but they also need an enabling environment to enable them express themselves maximally and efficiently in agricultural sector in particular, but it is not happening.

    “The schools in Benue state, if not because of school feeding, primary schools would have been dead; the teachers go there, they don’t teach because they are not being paid.”

    ‘We’ve won already – Ortom

    However, Ortom’s representative at the INEC Collation Centre, Mr. Alex Ter Adum, told The Nation that the supplementary election is just a formality for the governor.

    “It is no supplementary election; it is only complementary election for our victory,” Adum said.

    He added: “As I stated earlier, I am saying that the returns by the Returning Officer for the election were not in accordance with the requirements of Section 179, sub-section 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    “It is also not in conformity with requirements of Section 26 of the Electoral Act; neither does it comply with the provisions of Regulation 47 of the Guidelines for the Conduct of this election; they ought to have isolated this issues in the ways specified in the Guidelines.

    “In places where elections were held and result s were mutilated thereafter when results have been declared at the polling units, they ought to have entered zero scores for all the political parties and voided all the results.

    “In areas where the Smart Card Readers was deployed and resisted by voters, and where manual accreditation was done, they ought to have voided those votes and declared zero for all the political parties.”

    “So, if you take the deductions from all these areas which occurred in Ukum, Guma, Gwer East, Okpokwu and Konshisha local government areas, the margin of lead for my candidate which is 81, 000 votes ought to be more and above the margin of places where elections were cancelled or did not hold.

  • Ganduje distributes safe delivery kits to expectant mothers in Kano

    Kano State Government has distributed over 10,000 Delivery Kits worth N150 million to Pregnant Women in the State.

    The distribution exercise covered 15 Local Government Areas with each package containing basic items needed during and after delivery.

    The State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje disclosed this on Thursday, during the launch of the distribution of the Free Delivery Kits to 2,000 expectant mothers at Gama Primary Health Centre, where the re-run will be held in Nassarawa Local Government Area.

    Dr. Ganduje, represented by his deputy, Dr. Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna stated that the present administration has given priority to free Maternal care for the protection of mothers and children.

    “Today’s Programme is a continuation of the Kits distribution exercise whereby 2,000 women beneficiaries are going to collect delivery Kits containing items needed for by every pregnant Women” he stated.

    Ganduje disclosed that the administration had organised 18 Months training programme on Midwifery after which the trainees were posted to rural areas to assist in ensuring safe delivery.

    According to the Governor, about 1,936 midwives were given special training on how to address contemporary challenges of the profession, adding that the government had equally procured tricycles for conveying pregnant Women to health facilities in their localities.

    He noted that the government also conducted free eye treatment across the state, adding that the exercise which took place at Isa kaita Primary Health Care centre, where over 150 people benefitted, has recorded a huge success.

    He pointed out that over 3,000 people with eye problems also received free medicine and eyeglasses.

    Gov. Ganduje assured the people of his administration’s commitment to continue to execute more projects meant to improve their wellbeing.

    Earlier, the State Commissioner for Health Dr. Kabir Ibrahim Getso said in an effort to improve the Health Sector, the administration of Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje had renovated over 300 Hospitals across the State.

    He maintained that plan was underway to upgrade more Hospitals to allow people in the State get easy access to medical treatment.

    ” Apart from this, the State has recruited more Staff on health to address manpower shortage and create high productivity in our services ” he added.

    Dr. Getso urged the beneficiaries to make the good use of the materials given to them and make sure they reciprocate the gesture by coming out enmass to vote Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje on the 23rd March 2019 supplementary election.

  • BUK gets 36 professors, 40 associates

    Bayero University, Kano (BUK) has approved the promotion of 36 professors and 40 associate professors.

    A statement signed by the University Registrar and Secretary to the Council, Hajiya Fatima Binta Mohammed, noted that all appointments took effect from October 2018.

    It said the 13th Governing Council of the institution at its 6th regular meeting held on Thursday, March 7, 2019 approved the appointment.

    “The 13th Governing Council of Bayero University, Kano at its 6th regular meeting approved the promotion of 36 professors, 40 associate professors and 8 non-teaching staff to the ranks of Deputy Registrars, Deputy Bursar, Deputy Directors and Assistant Chief Technician,” the statement said in parts.

    Among the newly promoted professors are:   Basheer Abdulkadir Zubair Chedi (Professor of Pharmacology and Therapeutics); Musa Aliyu (Professor of Pharmacology); and BUK ASUU Chairman, Ibrahim Magaji Barde (Professor of Accounting).

    Others are Prof Kabiru Tahir Hamid (Accounting and Finance); Ahmad Magaji (Nigerian Languages) and Ya’u Haruna Usman, who is now Professor of Adult Education.

    Three of the 40 new professors are women.  They are Prof Dije Muhammad Sulaiman (Accounting); Prof Hannatu Sabo Ahmad (Accounting), and Prof Amina Mustapha (Agric Economics and Extension), who is the Deputy Director, Outreach and Publications of the Centre for Dryland Agriculture (CDA).

    Also promoted to the rank of Professor are: Abubakar Jika Jiddare (International Relations); Lofty-John Chukwuemeka Anyanwu (Surgery); Emmanuel Kolo (Otorhinolaryngology); and Muhammed Haruna Awaisu (Sociology).

  • Tempers rise as INEC gets set for makeup elections

    Kano APC: hold Kwankwaso responsible for any breach

    Ganduje talks tough

    Benue APC, PDP flex muscles

    Sokoto police commissioner warns troublemakers

    Tempers rose yesterday as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) reversed itself on the stalled governorship election in Bauchi State.

    It said the supplementary election, which it cancelled last week, will hold on Saturday in areas not affected by yesterday’s court ruling.

    A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja ordered the electoral umpire to pull the brakes on its planned resumption of collation of results for Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area.

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has been pushing for the collation and declaration of the results, rejected the decision.

    Besides Bauchi, supplementary elections are holding also in Benue, Adamawa, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto states.

    Amid the anxiety in Kano State, Governor Umar Ganduje warned against any breach of the peace.

    His warning came as the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) advised security agents and residents to hold former Governor Musa Kwanwaso responsible for any violence.

    The police in Sokoto were warning criminals to stay away.

    In Benue, the APC and the PDP renewed their war of words over the supplementary polls.

    INEC’s National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye, said the Commission, will work towards the expeditious resolution of the collation in the local government.

    He said: “The commission has complied with the order of the Federal High Court Abuja. The Commission has suspended the collation of the governorship election result for Tafawa Balewa Local Government.

    “The commission will proceed and complete the Collation of the result of the State Assembly Election for Tafawa Balewa Local Government and make a return.

    “The Commission will proceed with supplementary elections on Saturday in relation to areas that are not affected by the court order.

    “The commission has a history of obedience to court orders. The commission will continue to comply with court orders and will take steps to vacate orders where it feels strongly that the court that gave the order has no jurisdiction.

    “The Commission will work towards the expeditious resolution of the collation process in Tafawa Balewa Local Government.”

    In a bench ruling yesterday, Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo ordered parties in a suit by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the incumbent Governor Muhammed Abubakar to maintain the status quo.

    The judge ordered “that parties shall maintain status quo ante, pending the determination of the substantive matter of this case”.

    The judge adjourned the hearing till today.

    Justice Ekwo judge gave the order following INEC’s failure to comply with the earlier order he made on Monday for it to appear yesterday and show cause why the reliefs being sought by the plaintiffs in their motion ex-parte should not be granted.

    The APC and Abubakar had, in their motion ex-parte, prayed the court for two main reliefs:

    • An order of interim injunction restraining the defendant/respondent whether by Itself or acting through its agents, privies or any person on its behalf, howsoever described, from resuming, concluding and/or announcing the collation of the results of the Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchl State in respect of election to the office of the Governor of Bauchl State held on 9th” March, 2019, pending the hearing and determination of the the plaintiff/applicant’s motion on notice.
    • An order of accelerated hearing and abridgement of time to two days within which the defendant/respondent is to enter appearance and file its response in defence of the suit.

    Rather than granting the reliefs ex-parte, the court, on Monday, ordered INEC, listed as the sole defendant in the suit, to show cause why the plaintiffs’ reliefs should not be granted.

    The judge said: “The defendant is hereby ordered to appear in court on 19th March 2019 to show cause why the orders prayed on the motion ex-parte ought not to be granted.”

    When parties got to the court yesterday, INEC, represented by Tanimu Inuwa (SAN), told the court that the electoral body had filed a counter-affidavit to the plaintiffs’ originating summons.

    He also made an oral application, challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear the motion filed by the ruling party and its candidate, which, he argued, could only be entertained by an election tribunal.

    Raji objected to Inuwa’s position, insisting that INEC was yet to comply with the court’s order for it to show cause why the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs should not be granted.

    The Judge upheld Raji’s contention that INEC was yet to comply with the court’s order for it to show why the chiefs should not be granted.

    He said while INEC could not challenge the court’s jurisdiction by oral application, the counter-affidavit did not qualify as an affidavit showing cause.

    Justice Ekwo consequently ordered the parties to maintain the status quo (as things were) before the court’s proceedings and adjourned till tomorrow for the hearing.

    INEC, in its counter-affidavit, deposed to by Hassan Adamu, an officer of INEC, queried the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case brought by APC and Abubakar.

    It stated that contrary to paragraph 22 of the affidavit in support of originating summons, “I state that the decision by the defendant to conclude collation for Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State was made based on the figures contained in the duplicates of results of the election”.

    “Contrary to paragraph 29 of the affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that: Only Election Petition Tribunal has the jurisdiction to review the decision of the commission.

    “The decision of the Returning Officer referred to is in respect of declaration of scores and return of candidate, which is the exclusive preserve of the Election Petition Tribunal.

    “The defendant having rescinded its earlier decision based on facts that emerged later and made a return, any grievance arising therefrom now rests with the Election Petition Tribunal.

    “The availability of polling units’ results made the defendant to rescind its decision to conduct supplementary election.

    “Contrary to paragraph 30 of affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that the plaintiffs’ right to fair election (if any) will not be affected in any way.

    “Contrary to paragraph 31 of affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that none of the voting populace of Bauchi State will be disenfranchised, elections having been concluded.

    “Contrary to paragraph 32 of affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that the instant action is targeted at stopping the performance of a constitutional duty.

    “Contrary to paragraph 33 of affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that the plaintiffs do not have any threatened right capable of being protected.

    “Contrary to paragraph 34 of affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that the issues raised in this application are not triable by this honourable comt, same bordering on return at an election.

    “Contrary to paragraph 35 of affidavit in support of originating summons, I state that all eligible voters have cast their votes, leading to a return and once that is the case, this honourable court is divested of the jurisdiction to entertain this case.”

    Read also: Improved healthcare is priority for Buhari’s administration — Udoma

    KANO

    Kano State Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje yesterday warned that his government would not tolerate any breach of the peace under whatever guise.

    He said the state government would not fold its arms and watch “some desperate politicians instigate instability” and plunge the state into crisis.

    “As governor of Kano State and the Chief Security Officer of the state, I cannot sleep if any drop of blood is wasted. Brandishing of harmful objects is also abhorred by my administration,” Ganduje said.

    He made the assertions when an amalgamation of over 300 associations, under the platform of Kano Peace Ambassadors, visited him, assuring him of their resolve to promote peaceful coexistence before, during and after next Saturday’s supplementary governorship election.

    The groups marched from the Emir’s Palace through the streets to the Government House, where the governor received them.

    A letter was given to Ganduje, explaining their resolve to always see that peace thrives in the state.

    The Kano State chapter of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), led by Kabiru Ado Lakwaya and the National Association of Kano State Students Association (NAKSS) led its National President Aliyu Maikasuwa Rano, were among the organisations that visited the Government House.

    Ganduje said he was not speaking as a candidate, but as the governor of Kano State and the chief security officer of the state, that “anybody wishing to disrupt the peace and stability of the state will not go scot-free. Kano is a very peaceful state and must remain peaceful.”

    He told his audience the peace accord he and other candidates in the state signed before the presidential and National Assembly elections, was still in force.

    A similar accord was signed, according to him, before the governorship and state assembly elections.

    He said: “After the signing of the Accord, I invited all the contestants for a group photograph, which they all joined at the venue of the signing event.

    “After the signing ceremony, I also invited all of them to the Government House for a special dinner. All the contestants were there with the exception of only one. I am just trying to prove to you how peaceful our government is”

    Abubakar Muhammad Janaral, who co-led the groups, commended Ganduje for making statements that promote peaceful co-existent.

    Janaral said: “Your Excellency, we are monitoring speeches that are being made by political leaders in the state, we found out that, many out there are only triggers to instability.

    “We are indeed commending your political statements that prove to be in line with peaceful engagements. Anyone you see here, Your Excellency, is a Peace Ambassador.

    “Sir, as the chief security officer, we urge you to continue promoting peace and stability in the state. And we are living witnesses that your speeches then and now are all drivers to peace and stability.”

    Also yesterday, the ruling APC urged security agencies and Kano residents to hold Senator Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso responsible should there be any breach of the peace before, during and after the March 23 supplementary governorship poll in the state.

    In a statement by the Commissioner for Information, Youth & Culture, Malam Muhammad Garba, the APC leadership in Kano expressed worry over inciting comments credited to the former governor.

    Garba, who doubles as the Chairman, Publicity Committee, Kano APC Campaign Organisation, wondered why the senator has not been called to order by security agencies in the state, particularly, the police.

    SOKOTO

    The Sokoto State Police Command yesterday warned potential crime perpetrators to steer clear during and after the supplementary election in the state.

    Commissioner of Police Aminu Koji Kwabe said the command would not tolerate any breach of the law, especially in the 136 polling units across 22 local government areas, where the extra poll will be conducted.

    The police commissioner spoke while parading no fewer than 12 suspected criminals apprehended in possession of dangerous weapons and hard drugs.

    The criminal hideout raided by the police included:  Gidan Igwai; Old Garage; Central Moto Park; Gangare Gidan Dankure and Mana Area – all within the Sokoto metropolis.

    Also recovered from the suspects were 140 wraps of Indian hemp; 549 pieces of hard drugs, including pieces of exol and six sachets of Diazepom, among others.

    Kwabe, represented by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Abubakar Sadeeq, said the command will not relent on its effort to rid the state of criminals.

    He urged drug abusers, thugs and other potential criminals to change their ways as the police would neither tolerate, nor relent their efforts in combating crime and criminals planning to foment trouble during the rescheduled election.

    Kwabe urged the maintenance of peace during the process and after the announcement of the results, warning that the police in the state would not allow the collapse of law and order in the state.

    “Law and order must be maintained in Sokoto. The command will not hesitate to deal with any one tempting its strength by causing mayhem during and after the elections. We will also ensure we bring perpetrators of violence to book to face justice”, he said.

    BENUE

    The Benue chapters of the APC and PDP engaged in muscle-flexing yesterday.

    Both parties are confident of winning the supplementary election billed for Saturday.

    Sam Ode, who is the running mate to the APC governorship candidate, said the electorate would on Saturday cast their ballot for his party’s flagbearer, Emmanuel Jime.

    He said the people were desirous for a change to better their living conditions.

    Speaking in an telephone chat with The Nation, Ode, a former Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs, maintained that for civil servants and pensioners to enjoy their benefits on regular basis, the PDP government must be voted out on Saturday.

    He stated: “Just like the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government has been paying federal workers promptly, the APC in Benue will give priority to welfare of workers and pensioners who are senior citizens of the state.

    “It takes wisdom for any Benue governor to know that the economy of the state revolved around public workers’ salaries and the APC had already put in measures to give adequate attention to Benue workers and called on voters to come out and vote APC on Saturday.”

    The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Special Duties, Abraham Kwaghngu told our correspondent that Benue people were already at home with Governor Samuel Ortom and would vote him again in the rescheduled election.

    He noted that never in the history of the state has a governor staked his neck for the people and defended them as done by Ortom.

    Kwaghngu said: “The good thing about Benue supplementary election is Governor Ortom is ahead of his opponent with 81,000 votes wide margin and no magic would save the APC.”

    He called on PDP supporters to turn out and vote Ortom once and for all so that he can settle down to business.

    Kwaghngu noted: “All the polling units in contention are PDP strongholds and therefore, there is nothing to worry about.”

     

  • Rerun elections: ‘We must not allow Kano to burn’

    Kano concerned citizens initiative (KCCI), on Monday in Kano declared that the group of elders will not fold its arms and allow anyone’s vaulting ambitions to plunged the state into chaos.

    Chairman of the group, Alhaji Bashir Tofa alongside eminent members of the group made this statement while speaking to news men over recent happenings in the political circle of the state.

    He said the elders will do everything possible to protect and prevent Kano and would not allow the state to burn on account of ambition of an individual.

    Tofa who was one time presidential candidate of the defunct National Republican Convention, (NRC) noted that KCCI is disturbed, anxious, concerned and troubled by the seeming discord and agitation manifesting in Kano since the collation of the March 9th election results which culminated in INEC declaring it inconclusive.

    He called on political leaders to desist from making unguarded utterances capable of inflaming passion, which could trigger violence.

    “That it is incumbent upon political leaders to strictly obey the rules of engagement and the law by admonishing their members, operatives and followers to be mindful of the full wrath of the law this time around adding that open monitory and other unlawful inducements must never be condoned during the rerun elections.”

    Tofa, however, charged security personnel to remain alert from now until the formal declaration of the rerun election results and after.

    He also urged them to provide sufficient personnel to be detailed and posted to each of the polling units scattered over the 88 registration areas (wards) in the 30 affected local government areas of the state.

    “Security operatives must be seen to be upright and above board and completely nonpartisan. They have done well during the previous elections but the rerun exercise may yet prove to be more arduous and daunting.”

    “It also becomes imperative to take such security measures as would prevent people from neighboring states, who are non-residents of the state from coming in to partake in the March 23re rerun elections to forestall unnecessary tension or violence”

  • APC, PDP claim victory in Benue, Kano, Bauchi, others

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership has spoken on the governorship and Houses of Assembly elections, accusing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)of working with the opposition Peoples Democratic party (PDP) to deny it its victory in some states.

    The party rejected the commission’s decision on the results from Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State, alleging that its agents were not invited to witness the investigations conducted by the commission.

    In a swift reaction, the PDP said the APC was playing the victim.

    Although APC’s candidate did not participate in the governorship election in Rivers State, its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, said it was clear that Governor Nyesom Wike was losing before INEC halted the process. The results are being doctored to favour him, the party claimed.

    The APC said the process was fraudulently suspended in Rivers, adding that its reports of vote buying by the PDP and thuggery were ignored by the electoral management body.

    Besides, attempts are being made to blackmail the government into withdrawing security agents from the state, the party said.

    The statement reads: “After the March 9 governorship elections across the country, the polls in six states – Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto – were declared inconclusive by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The electoral process was also suspended in Rivers State in a very fraudulent circumstance.

    “Post election, Nigerians will recall that the All Progressives Congress (APC) had severally raised alarm over the plot by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to use violence, vote-buying and other election malpractices to subvert the will of the electorate and steal their mandate.

    “The shocking events leading to the last-minute postponement of the presidential election provided clear evidence with PDP agents caught in different parts of the country with programmed card readers, sensitive election materials and large cache of weapons and security paraphernalia.

    “Undeterred, the PDP executed its rigging plot through its agents across the country by unleashing violence, vote-buying and hijacking election materials to rig and falsify elections results. The result was violent disruption in many polling areas and over-voting which led to many cancelled votes and ultimately the supplementary elections and suspended exercise in some states.”

    Using a state by state analysis, the APC said “INEC declared the governorship election in Benue State inconclusive, citing an insufficient margin in votes obtained by the APC candidate, Emmanuel Jime, and the PDP candidate, Governor Samuel Ortom.

    “Even though the PDP claims a bogus lead of over 81,000 votes, reports strongly establish that this dodgy figure is an aggregate of ‘votes’ obtained by subterfuge, not from the numbers recorded by the card reader. There were cases in Logo, Gwer-West, Vandeikya, Guma, Buruku and Gboko local governments where the card reader was not used.

    “In Guma, a local government predominated by the APC, zero votes were allocated to our candidate by thugs loyal to the governor of the State, as agents of the party were chased away and election material diverted and ballot papers thumb-printed for the governorship candidate of the PDP.

    “In Logo, security reports indicated that the ballot papers were massively thumb-printed the night before the election day, while a brazen case of under-age voting supervised by state government compromised security personnel, was prevalent on the actual day of voting. INEC also reported that 41 polling units in Vandeikya did not use the card reader, as it was the case in many in Gwer-West, Gwer-East, Gboko and other places.

    “A coalition of election observers in Benue has since called on INEC to declare the candidate of the APC, Barr. Emmanuel Jime, the winner of the governorship poll, in line with the Electoral Act and we align with the position of these observers. There is no doubt that our candidate obtained the highest number of legitimate votes with the usage of the card reader.”

    On Rivers State, the party condemned what it described as “this horrid dance in Rivers”, alleging an “unholy alliance between Governor Nyesom Wike, PDP and INEC is to prevent Rivers people from electing a candidate of their choice by imposing Wike, the PDP candidate on them.”

    The ruling party said “It was glaring that Wike was losing until INEC stepped in to halt the process apparently to save Wike from impending defeat. INEC must put a halt to this madness and brazen illegality.

    “The desperation of the PDP governorship candidate, Governor Nyesom Wike to remain in office even if it means destroying the State and killing its people, is throwing the State into turmoil and crisis.

    “With regard to the governorship election in Rivers State, APC has observed with dismay the macabre dance between Wike and INEC in Rivers State. It is on record that Wike through the Rivers State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Obo Effanga engaged PDP card-carrying members as Local Government Area (LGA) Collation Officers to skew the elections in favour of Wike and the PDP.

    “We call on the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to immediately redeploy Mr. Effanga from Rivers State in order to avoid crisis that may follow the organised crime being executed by Wike and Obo Effanga to rig and alter the result of the 2019 governorship polls in Rivers State in favour of Wike.

    “Since the suspension of the electoral process in Rivers State, Governor Nyesom Wike and the State REC Obo Effanga have been re-writing and doctoring unit results in Rivers State Government House to favour Wike.

    “We are dismayed that some sponsored stakeholders including those who witnessed the killing of over 40 persons on the 2015 governorship election day alone due to someone’s quest to become governor by all means, appear to be hoodwinked by the very same character to believe that security agents especially the Army should have stayed away to allow a repetition of what happened in 2015.

    “As a party that was solely at the receiving end of the killings in Rivers State, the APC believes that the proactive steps taken by security agents to checkmate a repeat of the 2015 killings and destructions, is commendable and should be applauded by all peace-loving people.

    “We call on Nigerians and the international community not to be hoodwinked into believing that Nigerian security agencies interfered in the electoral process in Rivers State. It is a misleading narrative being planted in the media to particularly blackmail the military and the federal government into pulling out security agents from the state, thereby returning the State to the killing field many of us witnessed before, during and after the 2015 elections.

    “It is now clear to all that INEC has become deaf and blind to the fact that Governor Nyesom Wike invaded the Obio/Akpor Collation Centre with over 200 armed thugs and ordered his security men to shoot an Army Captain and another soldier providing perimeter security to the Collation Centre. Wike’s thugs carted away the electoral materials including both original copies of unit result sheets and ward collation sheets that were being used for the collation of results and took them to the Rivers State Government House where they were filled out with rigged and inflated figures.

    “We report that in most of the LGAs in the State, voting had concluded, results declared at the polling units and collation had begun before the abrupt suspension of the process. INEC does not have the power under our Electoral Act to suspend elections that has already been concluded. We suspect that INEC might be working to surreptitiously bring in cooked up results credited to Obio/Akpor LGA to skew the election in favour of Wike. We vehemently reject this anti-democratic move.”

    The party asked its members in Plateau state to remain focussed as its lead in the state was unassailable, expressing confidence that its candidate, Simon Lalong will eventually carry the day.

    The APC is also confidence that it will eventually carry the day in Kano state, saying “the opposition PDP camp in its self-deceit has continued to delude itself on its nonexistent electoral chance in Nasarawa local government area. The Kano electorate are not deceived.

    “Considering what happened in the inconclusive election widely characterized by PDP vote buying and voter intimidation, relevant agencies must ensure that such antidemocratic practice is not repeated.”

    It accused the Kano State Police Commissioner of actively assisting the opposition PDP to rig inside Kano city with the deployment of police security for Rabiu Kwankwaso loyalists while state commissioner’s orderlies were withdrawn.

    Kano, it said “remains an APC state. With the massive votes garnered by our presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari; the entire incoming 9th National Assembly positions – 3 Senators and 24 House of Representatives – won by the APC in Kano State; 27 State House of Assembly seats won by the APC out of 39 and governorship election victories in all local governments outside Kano metropolitan, there is no doubt that Kano State is a stronghold and key support base of the APC.

    “The APC’s visible achievements in Kano state under Governor Abdullahi Ganduje are enough to give the party an emphatic victory in the rerun election. Again, the rerun will be mostly in APC-controlled rural areas and Nasarawa local government area where our Deputy Governor, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna is from. Undoubtedly, Kano state remains an APC stronghold and remains in our firm control.”

    Speaking further on the decision of INEC regarding the supplementary polls in Bauchi state, the APC said “We reject INEC’s decision on the governorship election results from Tafawa Balewa local government area in Bauchi State, as signed and announced by the electoral body’s National Commissioner and chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye.

    “While the close relationship between Festus Okoye who chaired the fact-finding committee and Yakubu Dogara of the PDP is well known, hence inappropriate for the fact-finding exercise for Bauchi State, INEC has failed to adhere to the fundamental principle of fair-hearing by not inviting our agents during the hearing to ascertain the circumstances leading to the cancellation of the Tafawa Balewa Local Government election result.

    “INEC’s decision is illegal as the electoral body contravenes the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended. We reiterate that according to Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) and INEC Guidelines for 2019 General Elections, the electoral body is not empowered to reverse any decision taken at the Collation Centre by the Returning Officer appointed for that purpose. Such decisions can only be reversed by a court of law, especially when INEC cannot approbate and reprobate.”

    The party is also laying claim to Sokoto State, saying “as displayed in the results of the presidential election, Sokoto is a strong APC state. This rubbishes the suspicious and apparently stolen results ascribed to the PDP governorship candidate.”

    APC accused the PDP candidate and Governor Aminu Tambuwal, of using thugs and fake security agents to scare voters in the state. This gave PDP agents a free and field day to rig and manipulate the governorship election. We are also aware of how huge funds were used to buy votes and how complicit INEC officials disenfranchised APC members by purporting that card readers stopped working in APC strongholds,” the party said.

    “The forthcoming supplementary election in Sokoto State gives the APC; our governorship candidate, Aliyu Ahmed and indeed the Sokoto electorate an opportunity to claim our mandate. Sokoto State is ready for the Next Level, we must not allow unpopular elements in the state and their backers in the discredited PDP to steal their mandate and subvert the will of the Sokoto electorate,” it added.

    The APC said it reported cases of over voting in Adamawa State and the use of security personnel to intimidate its agents and supporters, saying: “while we are confident of our party and candidate Governor Jibrilla Bindow’s victory ahead of the supplementary election in the state, we urge all stakeholders to avoid actions that can plunge the state into crisis”.

    “We equally urge INEC and relevant security agencies to ensure the supplementary election is free, peaceful and fair compared to the last inconclusive governorship election in the state which was characterised by many irregularities and voter intimidation. No political ambition is worth the life of any voters.

    “As a party, the APC is very confident of victory in the forthcoming supplementary elections. Our commitment to free and fair elections in the county remains resolute. We urge INEC to ensure that all loopholes that led to rigging, vote buying and intimidation of voters by the PDP is blocked.”

  • APC House of Reps elect Dies in Kano

    A Federal House of Representatives elect Garba Muhammad Butalawa, representing Kura, Madobi and Garun Mallam in Kano, has died.

    The Nation gathered that the Late Garba contested on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    He died at the Prime Clinic, Lamido Crescent on Saturday at around 2:30pm, his personal driver, Balarabe Shehu Butalawa confirmed this to The Nation.

    The House of Reps elect died after a protracted illness.

  • INCONCLUSIVE POLLS:Who wins Kano, Sokoto, Bauchi, Adamawa, Benue Plateau?

    After 9th March 2019 Governorship and State Assembly Elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission declared six state’s exercise inconclusive. This week, electoral body announced that it would hold supplementary elections in the affected states on 23rd March 2019. In this report, Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan, reports on how the extra elections would be fought and won

    THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced during the week that it will on March 23, 2019, conduct extra elections in the six states where the March 9 Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections were declared inconclusive. The affected states where the commission will be holding the supplementary polls are: Plateau, Sokoto, Bauchi, Benue, Adamawa and Kano.

    A statement on Tuesday by Festus Okoye, the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, said the commission met on Monday and reviewed the conduct of the 29 Governorship and 991 State Constituency Elections held across the country on the 9th of March 2019. The commission had declared winners in the governorship elections in only 22 states while the Returning Officers (ROs) in Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto states declared the elections inconclusive.

    “Consequently, the commission will conduct supplementary elections on Saturday 23rd March 2019 to conclude the process. Supplementary elections will also hold in polling units in all states where State Assembly elections were declared inconclusive and winners could not be declared,” Okoye said. Details of the constituencies including number of polling units and registered voters were published on the commission’s website last Wednesday, 13th March 2019.

    Expectedly, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have been bragging about their capacity to carry the day ahead of the March 23 Supplementary Elections to decide who will control power in the six aforementioned states. While the leadership of the APC has expressed its satisfaction with the decisions of INEC, the PDP is faulting the commission’s decision in some states like Sokoto, Adamawa and Benue.

    Both parties however vowed to win the re-run election billed for March 23 in all the states. While the APC now have control of 18 states following its victory in 13 of the 22 declared states, which is now added to the five states of Edo, Ondo, Ekiti, Kogi and Osun already in its kitty, the PDP can boast of 10 states, adding nine newly won states to Bayelsa State. The two parties are now poised to increase their tallies by adding more states on March 23.

     

    SOKOTO

    In Sokoto State, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of the PDP, who scored 489, 588, is leading his APC counterpart, Aliyu Sokoto, who garnered 486, 145 votes, with 3,413 votes. According to the details released by the electoral umpire, the two leading parties will on March 23, battle for 75,493 votes in 136 polling units in 22 local government areas of the state.

    Before the process was declared inconclusive, the two parties were laying claim to victory. But pundits say with over 75, 000 votes still at stake and the margin between Tambuwal and Sokoto standing at a meagre 3, 413, the March 23 election can tilt the final result of the governorship election in Sokoto state either way. “It is still too early to say precisely who will emerge the next governor of Sokoto state,” an analyst said.

    Factors being considered by pundits in putting the tag of ‘unpredictable’ on the ongoing contest in Sokoto State include the APC’s sterling performance during the Presidential and National Assembly Elections in the state and PDP’s unexpected comeback during the inconclusive Governorship and State Assembly polls. While the APC swept majority of the votes across the state in the earlier election, the PDP is leading in the latter with a slight margin.

    The presidential election results in Sokoto State showed that while President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC scored 490,333 votes, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the opposition PDP got 361,604 votes to place second. The APC also won the three senatorial seats in the state and pocketed majority of the House of Representatives seats. But during the Governorship and State Assembly Elections, the PDP turned the table and took the lead.

    Consequently, with the margin so slim and the votes to contest for quite much, Sokoto State remains a battleground ahead of the March 23 extra election. Reliable sources in the state told The Nation that the final result of the election in the state will be determined by some very local issues that are of importance to the ordinary people of the state. “The people are voting based on their individual convictions as to which of the two leaders, Wammakko and Tambuwal, can better their lots,” a source explained.

    Verdict: Battleground

     

    ADAMAWA

    Before the process was declared inconclusive in Adamawa, the PDP, with 367,471 votes as against APC’s 334,995, was leading by 32,476 votes. The candidates of the two parties have 40,998 votes to fight for. Incumbent Governor Jibrilla Bindow of the APC and his challenger PDP Umar Fintiri will be slugging it out on March 23. Convinced that it won the election outrightly on the first ballot, the PDP has been clamouring that it should be declared winner.

    On its part, the APC, realising that it has a hard task ahead of it, has been strategising on how to turn the table on March 23. But pundits say it is a herculean task that may be very difficult to carry out. With barely 41, 000 votes up for grab and the PDP already at advantage with 32, 471, in a state that was won by the opposition party during the Presidential and National Assembly Elections, the APC may be unable to wrought any magic.

    During the Presidential Election, PDP’s Atiku Abubakar polled 412, 266 to defeat APC’s President Muhammadu Buhari, his closest challenger who scored 377,488. The results show a difference of 34,778 between them. Ironically, Buhari won 11 of the state’s 21 local government areas, while Abubakar picked the remaining 10. Earlier, the PDP presidential candidate had lost his polling unit to the APC.

    The PDP had also won two, out of the three senatorial seats in the state as well as majority of the House of Representatives seats. Ishaku Elisha Cliff of the PDP, clinched the Adamawa North senatorial seat while his party man, Yaroe Binos Dauda, emerged winner in Adamawa South. The ruling party, APC claimed victory only through Dahiru Aishatu Ahmed, who was declared winner in Adamawa Central Senatorial District.

    All these facts, and more, will be trailing both the PDP and the APC as they go to polls on March 23 to decide the final winner of the obviously keen contest. However, the APC remains disadvantaged. Aside from the huge deficit the party will be struggling to cancel, renewed infighting among its chieftains may also work against its victory at the supplementary election.

    Verdict: PDP

     

    BAUCHI

    Before INEC announced that it will, next Tuesday, be resuming collation of governorship election result in Bauchi State and may declare the winner of the poll, hitherto ruled as inconclusive, the planned re-run election in the state, earlier scheduled for March 23, from all available facts, as well as emerging indications from parts of the state where elections were to hold, remained too close to call. The PDP candidate Bala Muhammed, is currently enjoying a slight lead with 4,059 votes. At the end of the inconclusive first ballot, the PDP had 469,512 votes while the APC candidate, Governor Mohammed Abubakar, got 465,453 votes.

    According to INEC, There were 139,240 cancelled votes to that were to be contested for on March 23. The voters in the affected polling units were to decide the winner of the tense governorship contest in the northeastern state. Before the inconclusive election, opinion as to which party will win Bauchi remained divided. The state, before 2015, has been a stronghold of the PDP.

    While those banking on President Buhari’s popularity in the state predicted that Governor Abubakar will retain his seat, others, citing the local politics of the state as well as some failings of the Abubakar led APC administration, coupled with the growing popularity of the opposition PDP in the last few years, said it will be easier for the opposition party to displace APC at the gubernatorial election. Not even the victory of the APC at the presidential election changed their stance.

    Though the APC won the three senatorial seats and majority of House of Representatives slots in the state, the victory of Speaker Yakubu Dogara and a host of other PDP candidates in the state provided a platform for the opposition party to rally its forces ahead of the gubernatorial and state assembly elections. The improved performance of the PDP in the inconclusive polls, according to analysts, is a result of the local issues determining the people’s voting preferences.

    But the political scenario in Bauchi state changed once again when the electoral commission announced its latest decision concerning the guber election in the state in a press statement on Friday night reportedly after resolving some issues around the result of Tafawa Balewa local government and some polling units in Ningi local government.

    INEC did not state whether by the decision, the scheduled supplementary election on 23 March has been cancelled. According to INEC, the number of cancelled votes in four polling units in Ningi Local Government was 2,533 and not 25,330 as recorded. On Tafawa Balewa Local Government election result, where collation was disrupted by armed gangs, affecting 7 out of 11 registration areas for governorship and 6 out of 11 for state assembly elections, INEC said a committee set up, has found that the results in polling units and registration areas are “available and in safe custody”.

    INEC thus decided to resume the resumption and conclusion of the collation of results of the council area for both the governorship and state assembly elections A new collation and returning officer for Tafawa Balewa has been appointed “to continue and conclude the collation process in place of the original collation officer, who withdrew from the exercise citing threats to her life and those of her family members”. The threatened collation officer was Dominion Anosike.

    While INEC says result in Tafawa Balewa will be announced after collation, the PDP claims it garnered over 40, 000 votes in the L.G.A to APC’s less than 30, 000. It is however left to be seen if the party’s claim will tally with the result INEC will come up with. Head or tail, the governorship election in Bauchi state is a straight fight between incumbent Mohammed Abubakar of the All Progressives Congress and former minister, Bala Mohammed of the Peoples Democratic Party.

    Verdict: Battleground

     

    BENUE

    At the end of the inconclusive gubernatorial election in Benue State, Governor Samuel Ortom of the PDP got 410, 576. His closest rival, Emmanuel Jime of the APC got 329, 022 at the close of the first ballot. Going by the result released by INEC, PDP’s Ortom currently leads the governorship contest with 81,554 votes. The two frontline candidates will be slugging out for 121, 011 votes in the affected polling units across the state.

    But analysts say it is going to be very difficult for APC, which also lost the last Presidential and National Assembly Elections in the state to the PDP, to overturn the deficit and win the supplementary election. “PDP will most likely go ahead to consolidate its lead at the extra polls on its way to finally retaining the troubled state in its political kitty till 2023,” an analyst said.

    Before Governor Ortom moved over to the PDP last year, Benue State was controlled by the APC. But following incessant face-offs between Ortom and the leadership of his then party as well as the presidency over the herdsmen/farmers clashes in the state, Ortom defected to the PDP and picked its governorship ticket. Many prominent chieftains of the APC, including Senator Barnabas Gemade, also dumped the party.

    The presidential candidate of the PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, had emerged winner of the Presidential Election in the state last month. The result, as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Collation Officer Prof. Sabastine Maimako, in Makurdi showed that President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC scored 347,668 vote, while Atiku scored 355,255 votes.

    Also noteworthy is the fact that during the presidential election, APC won in 10 Local Government Areas of the state, while PDP won in 13 Local Government Areas. The party also cleared all the three senatorial seats up for grab. Former Governor Gabriel Suswam emerged as the Senator for Benue North East, Emmanuel Yisa Orker-Jev for Benue North West and ex-Minister Patrick Abba Moro in Benue South.

    Majority of the State Assembly seats declared in the state are also now in the kitty of the PDP. The unexpected loss of the Benue North West seat by the APC leader in the state, Senator George Akume, disorganised the party ahead of the Governorship and State Assembly Elections. Though local issues like non-payment of workers’ salaries and lack of infrastructural amenities worked against the PDP and Governor Ortom, it appears the many killings and attacks suffered by the state decided how they voted.

    Verdict: PDP

     

    PLATEAU

    In Plateau State, incumbent Governor Simon Lalong of the APC got 583, 255 to lead Senator Jeremiah Useni of the PDP with 44,929 votes. Useni got 538, 326. The duo will be fighting for the outstanding 49,377 votes. But many analysts say the election is APC’s to win. With only 49, 377 votes to be contested for in the affected polling units, and APC already comfortably leading with 44, 929, the opposition party looks defeated already.

    Aside from its comfortable lead, the ruling APC also pocketed majority of the state assembly seats to show its acceptance across the state. The ruling party is also benefiting from the performance of Governor Lalong, which has been adjudged by many to be commendable, especially his ability to restore and maintain peace in the troubled parts of the North Central state. His relationship with civil servants in the state is also a plus for the ruling party.

    The current result of the governorship election which shows that APC is ahead of the PDP is a departure from what obtained at the Presidential and National Assembly Elections in the state. Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of the PDP, won the presidential election in Plateau after scoring 548,665 votes. Atiku defeated his closest opponent, Muhammadu Buhari, of the APC, who scored 468, 555 votes. Atiku won in 11 local government areas while Buhari won in six LGAs of the state.

    Although the APC lost the state to the PDP during the presidential election and could only manage to win one of the three senatorial seats, with one declared inconclusive, observers of the politics of the state insist that APC looks good to win the governorship election in the end.

    Verdict: APC

     

    KANO

    Kano State is one of the states where supplementary election will be holding on March 23. There are 100, 873 votes to decide who wins the election. The PDP, with 1,014,474 votes, is in the lead while the APC, which got 987, 810, is trailing in second place. The margin in the scores of the two contenders stands at 26,664 votes. It is this calculation that informs the position of most pundits that the election is still very open for either the ruling APC or the opposition PDP to win.

    The turn of events in the Kano gubernatorial election is coming as a huge surprise to many watchers of the unfolding political drama, but analysts conversant with the voting pattern of the people of the Northwestern state say there’s nothing strange in what has happened. According to Istifanus Bako of the Centre for Democracy and Good Governance (CDGG), local issues are determining the ongoing voting patterns.

    Given that President Buhari of the APC recorded a landslide victory at the Presidential and National Assembly Elections in the state, many pundits have given the Gubernatorial and State Assembly polls to the ruling party without batting an eyelid. The presidential candidate of the APC, President Muhammadu Buhari, defeated his opponent, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku of the PDP, with 1, 073, 175 votes.

    The APC Presidential candidate garnered 1, 464, 768 votes, to defeat the PDP candidate, who garnered 391,593 votes.

    The APC also pocketed the three senatorial seats in the state to drive home its landslide victory at the Presidential and National Assembly Elections. Former Governor Ibrahim Shekarau won the Kano Central Senatorial seat, Barau Jibrin emerged the senator in Kano North while another former governor, Gaya Ibrahim Kabiru, claimed the seat in Kano South.

    But during the inconclusive Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections, the tide changed as many voters opted to vote against Governor Abdulai Ganduje. Sources say the dollar scandal he got enmeshed in shortly before the general elections commenced has done a lot of damages to his popularity, especially among the ordinary people of the state. This appears to be working against him and the APC at the polls.

    The PDP governorship candidate in the state, Abba Kabir Yusuf, has expressed confidence that he would emerge winner of the coming governorship re-run election in the state. Kabir-Yusuf, who is the son-in-law of PDP chieftain, Rabui Kwankwaso, says Kano people want a trustworthy leader. This is just as Governor Ganduje promised that the PDP will be shocked by the outcome of the re-run elections.

    Ganduje said he was unperturbed by the wishful thinking and slapdash deportment of the PDP candidate considering what happened in the inconclusive election widely characterized by alleged vote buying and voter’s intimidation by the party. The two parties, sources claim, are working round the clock in the affected areas to ensure that they get the votes needed to merge victorious on March 23. The March 23 supplementary election will take place in 210 Polling Units constituting 88 Registration Areas.

    Verdict: Battleground

  • PDP set for supplementary polls in Kano, Bauchi, Benue, others

    The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed the readiness of the party for the supplementary governorship and state assembly elections scheduled to hold in six states on Mach 23.

    The affected states are Kano, Bauchi, Benue, Adamawa, Plateau and Sokoto where the Independent National Electoral Commission declared the March 9 elections inconclusive.

    Rising from an emergency National Working Committee (NWC) meeting in Abuja Thursday, the party nevertheless demanded that INEC release the results of the election in the affected states and make returns as appropriate.

    In a statement released after the emergency meeting, the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan insisted that the party was in clear lead in the states where the poll was declared inconclusive.

    Slamming the INEC chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu of for alleged partiality, the PDP cited the results of the governorship election in Ogun State where the APC candidate was declared winner even when the margin of lead between him and the runner up was lower than the number of cancelled votes.

    The main opposition party regretted that the same INEC denied victory for PDP governorship candidates who found themselves in similar circumstances in the affected states.

    The statement said, “The hierarchy of the party condemns, in very strong terms, the manner in which the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, declared states where PDP had popular support and defeated the All Progressives Congress (APC) as inconclusive, whereas in a state like Ogun state, where APC failed to achieve a higher margin of lead over cancelled votes, was declared the winner.

    “The PDP found it strange that INEC can have two sets of rules in the same election for the various political parties.

    “More worrisome is the resolution which arose from a meeting between some governors of the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari, where the PDP has been informed that a decision was taken to seize Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Plateau, Sokoto and Kano states in the March 23, scheduled supplementary election.

    “It is instructive to state that the Buhari Presidency has not denied this strong allegation of rigging plans, thus strengthening the reality that the APC is always prepared to benefit from electoral fraud”.

    The PDP further stated that the party had deliberated and interfaced with stakeholders from the various states where governorship supplementary elections have been scheduled to hold.

    It added that following the deliberations, the party had mandated all its members to resist any attempt by anybody to tamper with the will of the people in their states.

    “In Sokoto state, a stronghold of our party and where the PDP is already in a clear lead, our victory at the March 23 supplementary election is guaranteed.

    “In Benue, the people have expressed their readiness to go into the supplementary election and they are prepared to vote for the PDP candidate, Governor Samuel Ortom.

    “They are also aware that by PDP’s current leading margin of over 81,000 votes, it is manifestly clear that there is no way APC, with all its manipulations, militarization, arm-twisting, intimidation and harassment, will defeat the PDP in Benue.

    “In Adamawa, the PDP observed the mischievous calculation of the APC in sponsoring someone, who did not participate in the election, to go to court and claim that the logo of his party was omitted in the ballot.

    “This is a their desperate bid to get the election already won by the PDP cancelled. The PDP however notes the failure of the APC to achieve its mischief in Adamawa state.

    “In Bauchi state, it is known to all, including the APC and its governorship candidate, that Tafawa Balewa Local Government has always been a home to the PDP since 1999. We therefore counsel the APC rigging machine to avert engaging the people of that constituency, as it will be of no avail.

    “In Kano state, the APC will be confronting the strong will of the people to do away with a corrupt and incompetent government, which Governor Abdullahi Ganduje has come to represent. The atmosphere of Kano state is ominous and any responsible government will take note and align in the interest of the people.

    “Already, the people of Kano state are standing shoulder to shoulder with the PDP in their pursuit of bringing a government that will be representative and purposeful.

    “On no account must Nigerians allow a culture of impunity, where those who failed in any elections will compromise our electoral arbiter and force themselves on the people.

    “In Rivers state, the PDP restates our demand that INEC should release the results already collated on the governorship election in which PDP clearly won and declare Governor Nyesom Wike as winner.

    “Furthermore, the PDP expresses worry over the damage done to the image of the military by its hierarchy by allowing itself to be used by the APC.

    “It is despicable that our military has been dragged into politics to an extent where soldiers now join issues with politicians in the media and conduct its affairs as if it has become a political party. This partisan involvement of our armed forces, to say the least, has impaired the confidence Nigerians have on the institution of the military”, the PDP said.

     

  • I’ll win Kano gov rerun, Ganduje boasts

    Kano state Governor Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje has expressed optimism of winning the March 23 gubernatorial rerun election in the state.

    Ganduje stated this while addressing a crowd of his supporters who gathered to welcome him upon his return from a one-day official visit to Abuja.

    He expressed delight over the peaceful conduct of last Saturday gubernatorial election in the state which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared inconclusive.

    He assured Kano people of his unshaken belief he would win in the 23rd March, 2019 rerun elections across some identified polling units as announced by INEC.

    Read Also: Ganduje: PDP’ll be shocked

    He hailed the electorate for turning out en mass during the election, “especially for your decision to vote for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

    ‘’ We saw their unflinching support for joining the long queues at their various polling units.

    “As you are all aware, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed the 23rd of this Month (March) for rerun election in some identified polling units in the state.

    “I am therefore using this medium to call on the electorate to come out en mass and vote for the ruling APC in an orderly manner,” he stated.

    Ganduje assured “By the grace of Allah, The Almighty, APC will emerge victorious after the rerun election. We are grateful to all. May we have peaceful conduct of this election”.