From RomanusUgwu, Abuja
The All Progressives Congress (APC) Zamfara State chapter has pleaded with the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu Abubakar, to protect the members of the party in the State from the constant harassment by the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) government.
An APC governorship aspirant and former House of Representatives member, Hon Aminu Sani Jaji, who made the appeal during an interaction with newsmen in Abuja over the weekend, noted that the petition on the humiliation of APC members in the State is already in the custody of the IGP.
He alleged that snce the PDP-led government took over the state, members of the APC are hunted down regularly.
The former Chairman House of Representative Committee on security and intelligence, insisted that Zamfara is still an APC state, lamenting that since PDP took over, APC members have continued to live in fears.
Begging the IGP to intervene in the security challenges and molestation of APC members in the state, Jaji said: “APC is still the majority in Zamfara but because we want to accommodate our people and because we want peace in our state, we decided to be the opposition. For a while, series of intimidation and harassment coming from the PDP government, arresting and detaining our members and leveling false allegations against them.
“We have been crying and shouting to the security agencies and up to this moment, most of them look at our complaint as something that should not be heard, which is unfair because we are Nigerians and we have the right to be in an opposition party.
“We have the right to display our own political activities in accordance with the law. The police have refused to give adequate protection to the APC members in Zamfara state. One of our colleagues was arrested and they alleged that he sponsored bandits and just last week, another APC stalwart and 16 others were arrested by the police in his own residence.
“They leveled the same allegation against him, that they have intelligence report that he is holding meeting with repentant bandits. This was according to the police commissioner.
“When I got this information, I called the Commissioner of Police and complained to him, but he said he was not aware of who arrested them and that he is not aware of the arrest. Later they released him on bail unconditionally. So, that means it was a political arrest. The Zamfara State governor, as the chief law officer is hitting up the state,” he noted.
Explaining further on what the APC members want the IGP to do, he said: “Our demand is for the IGP to intervene because none of our complaints had been attended to since the time the PDP government came to power.
“So, we want the IGP to look at it and call the commissioner of police to order so that he will do the needful by conducting himself according to the ethics of his profession,” he said.
Asked the best way to resolve the crisis in Zamfara APC, he said: “Actually, APC in Zamfara does not have factions as far i am concerned because, legally speaking, the so called claim by Senator Kabiru Marafa, has no basis.”
“I don’t see any reason the party at the national level should listen at him. I am part of the G8 members in Zamfara APC or will l say the mother of the G8. I don’t know why somebody, even before the emergence of this current administration of PDP in the state, said anybody who is supporting him, should vote for Accord Party should be claiming membership of APC.
“He said it categorically and that was part of the agreement he had with the incumbent government of PDP that if Accord did not get it and the PDP got it, the governor will make the Accord candidate his SSG, and that is what is playing out now. Also, one of the incumbent governor’s commissioner is the person who contested in Accord party.
“He was in APC with Marafa and Marafa asked his to go to Accord Party, he is now a Commissioner and the other one a Special Adviser. There are so many other things, like the person who is claiming to be the chairman of Marafa faction of APC in Zamfara state is now serving as the permanent commissioner in the national Hajj Commission. So, the thing is if Marafa is APC member, he can come out and tell his people that if you are with me, come to APC, if you are with the PDP government continue enjoying being with the government.
“For me, we don’t have any problem in Zamfara APC. Like I said, we had a meeting, myself together with former Governor Abdulazeez Yari because there is no way you can have a party in a state without having a leader. We recognize Yari, being a former governor for eight years as the party leader and that is why we respect him as the party leader in the state.
“Then, there is no way you can move your party forward without recognizing the party executives in the state. We don’t have any problem, I don’t know why people are even mentioning it, even Yari, I told him that I did not even know why he even mentioned that one.
“There is no problem whatsoever. If you check, last week, about nine local government chairmen who claimed to be chairmen of Marafa faction, came out and challenged Marafa that they did not know the time he filed the suit against the APC, and that they are even ready to take Marafa to court,” he noted.