From Mohammed Munirat Nasir, Gusau.
Three days after the official commencement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Registration and Revalidation exercise in Zamfara, the first civilian governor and the presumed political commander, Senator Ahmed Sani Yarima is still yet to get registered.
The APC Registration and Revalidation Exercise began on Saturday in Zamfara state with the revalidation of the memberships of the major stakeholders of the party but up till Monday morning, the Yarima who ruled the state for 8 years (1999-2007) and served as Senator of the Zamfara West Senatorial zone for 12 years (2007 -2019) is yet to get registered.
Yarima according to investigation was in his hometown Bakura in Bakura local government area on Saturday where he spent the whole day waiting for the Registration officials sent from the national headquarters of the party but there were no where to be found.
Yarima who was said to have consulted President Muhammafu Buhari on the issue also spent the whole of Sunday in his house in Gusau the Zamfara state capital waiting for the officials from Abuja but surprisingly the Lawal Kareto led seven man Registration Committee didn’t show up to register/revalidate Yarima.
According to some APC stakeholders, the refusal to register Yarima is connected with the accusations that he is romancing with the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.
They are alleging the Yarima had since 2019 abandoned the APC for the PDP considering the roles they alleged he played during the state assembly bye election in Bakura local government area late last year.
A stalwart of the party and a former member of the national assembly, Alhaji Aminu Sani Jaji in an interview in Gusau on Saturday evening after returning from Birnin Magaji local area where he revalidated his membership said said if Yarima proves to still be a member and his constituency in Bakura wants him, he will be registered.
“The issue is that of his constituency in Bakura because with what the registration committee told us before the commencement of the exercise, all eligible members would be registered,” he said.
However, a voice clip by a former commissioner for local government who also served several times as Bakura local government council chairman, Alhaji Bello Dankande Gamji alleged that Yarima is no more a member of the APC.
Dankande alleged that during the recent Bakura House of Assembly bye-election Yarima donated heavily on the PDP candidate and also silently campaigned for the PDP against the APC.
Speaking to journalists who spent several hours to witness the registration at the residence of Yarima on Sunday night, an aide to the embattled Senator, Malam Junaidu Dosara said Yarima is a bonafide and a major stakeholder of the APC in Zamfara and the country.
He said the delay in registering and revalidating Yarima membership was due to some technical hitches which he said have been resolved.
Dosara assured that Yarima will be revalidated on Monday at his residence as mandated by national headquarters of the party.
“The APC Bakura local government registration booklet was earlier said to be missing but have now been found, so Yarima would be registered tomorrow as President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the registration officials to register Yarima on Monday,” he said.
The ongoing political maneuver according to a youth leader in the state, Comrade Abba Mohammed Gusau is an sign that Yarima has lost political relevance.
“Yarima should come out and let us know where he belongs to because it is not possible for a person to belong to two political parties.
“Today Yarima will speak in favour of APC, tomorrow he will speak in favour of PDP. He should stop confusing us, he should come out straight for us to know where he belongs politically,” he said.
It will be recalled that major APC stakeholders in Zamfara expect Yarima have their memberships revalidated since on Saturday when the exercise began in the state.
