From Ali Abare, Gombe

Ahead of the February 25 local government election in Gombe State, political parties are putting finishing touches to their strategies. The battle will see the All Progressives Congress (APC) challenge the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the control of power across the 11 local government areas of the state.

Earlier, a High Court in Gombe has outlawed the Interim Management Committees constituted by the administration of Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo to oversee the affairs of the 11 councils, leaving the state government with no option than to conduct fresh local government election.

The Gombe State Independent Electoral Commission (GOSIEC) released a guideline of activities leading to the election, with controversy already surrounding the issue as the two major political parties involved in the election flex muscles in a no- holds barred contest.

But the appointment and training of electoral officers that would handle the election earlier slated to hold on December 3 elicited heated arguments among supporters of the two political parties. The GOSIEC had earlier announced a shifting of the appointment and training of the electoral officers to enable its officials appear before the state House of Assembly to defend its budgetary allocation. But the APC saw the move as a ploy to subvert the process in favour of the ruling PDP.

A more contentious issue relates to the demand by GOSIEC for aspirants to pay stipulated fees for elective positions with chairmanship aspirants expected to pay N500, 000; deputy chairman, N250, 000 and Councilor, N150, 000, with opposition political parties under the aegis of the Coalition of Progressive Parties (CPP) accusing the GOSIEC of arbitrarily charging fees in order to discourage the opposition from participating in the election. Already, CPP has gone to court to challenge GOSIEC’s decision to levy aspirants in the election.

Twenty three opposition political parties under the CPP while calling on GOSIEC to review its decision to impose fines in the election gave two other conditions to be met by the state electoral body before the parties can agree to participate in the election.

“The third condition is that GOSIEC should use the Card Reader as obtained in council elections recently conducted in some states across the country” the CPP emphasized.

Magaji Kwairanga, CPP chairman in Gombe, who spoke through the coalition’s secretary, said the high cost of nomination forms for the positions of Chairman, Deputy Chairman and Councilor are indications that the Dankwambo led PDP administration in the state is not interested in conducting free and fair elections.

Kwairanga recently told journalists that the latest move is one of such sinister moves to conduct elections that will not be free and fair.

Announcing the postponement of training of 22 electoral officers scheduled to hold on January 6 and 7, a move that further drew the angst of the opposition parties, GOSIEC’s Commissioner in charge of Public Affairs, Kalagar Kudi Lubo explained that even though there was a shift in date for the training, there was no cause for alarm.

Speaking on behalf of Mr. Caleb Maina, chairman of the GOSIEC, Lubo said even though the appointment and training of the electoral officers was made public in the election guideline, there was no need for fear as the training was in-house. But opposition parties in the state viewed this move by the GOSIEC with suspicion, raising further alarm over alleged plot to scuttle the election in favour of the ruling party.   

The Gombe council election is coming at a time when both the ruling PDP and the opposition APC are contending with internal wrangling which may have telling effect on the conduct of the election and which may eventually decide the outcome of the exercise.

The PDP in Gombe has recently witnessed a deluge of defections notably by stalwarts and leaders of the party who continue to leave the ruling party in droves and to pitch their tent with the opposition APC.  The likes of Alhaji Habu Mua’azu, former Youth Leader of the PDP, ex-Ministers Modibbo Aliyu, Senator Umar Idris Abdullahi and Danjuma Goje’s deputy, John Lazarus Yoriyo and many others. Many have since left the PDP for the APC, threatening to exert their pound of flesh from the ruling party in the state.

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Again, for the APC, the various power blocs that came together to form the party prior to the 2015 general election seem to be at one another’s throat, with various factions  threatening the smooth running of the party in the state. Already, parallel state party executives have emerged, with each claiming control over the party.

A further crack in the Gombe APC emerged prior to th7e public declaration of some political heavy weights that made known their intention to leave the PDP and to join the APC. The move sent jitters across those who felt they own the party and the original members of the defunct legacy parties. 

The crisis apparently ravaging the Gombe APC assumed a new dimension following the emergence of a new splinter group, the Adalchi Group, comprising only original members of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC).

Chairman of the new group, Alhaji Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki, a former House of Representatives member that represented Gombe/Kwami/Funakaye Federal Constituency, told journalists that the group emerged to give solid support to President Muhammadu Buhari as well as save the party from the ongoing crisis.

“Considering the uncertainty of the party leadership in the state in terms of loyalty and support to Buhari and his government coupled with fear of betrayal, there is need for us as CPC members to resist and denounce the party leaders at the state level who are jeopardizing the effort and policies of the Buhari-led administration” Mailantarki explained.

He raised the alarm over plans by members of the New PDP to hijack the APC in Gombe from the ward level, stressing the reason for the formation of the new group that would stand solidly behind President Buhari.

Though an APC Caretaker Committee has since been constituted by the national leadership of the party to address the lingering crisis in Gombe, mutual suspicion still exists among supporters of the party, casting doubt as to whether the APC will be able to put its house in order and to effectively challenge the ruling PDP in the coming council polls.

While the PDP continues to grapple with its dwindling popularity in the state, occasioned by the bandwagon effect, with mostly top politicians ditching the party for the new bride, the APC in order to remain relevant especially at the centre, the popularity of the APC however continues to swell by the day.

While preparations for the council polls have reached top gear, politicians continue to intervene with a view to making sure the exercise by GOSIEC is conducted peacefully and successfully.

Alhaji Habu Muazu, an APC stalwart, recently urged members of the party to embrace peace while protecting their votes jealously. He noted that it is by so doing that the will of the electorate would be fully respected.

Muazu who is believed to be in the 2019 guber race also called on the leaders of the party as well as those seeking elective positions to sustain their sensitisation campaign on the need for their followers  to shun violence before, during and after the elections. “We are sensitizing our members on the need to protect their votes peacefully and disgrace those that are planning to manipulate the election.”

He further urged the electorate to make sure they stay behind to protect their votes after casting their ballots, saying the law expects such voters to stay behind but to conduct themselves in an orderly manner. Last week, political parties conducted internal primaries for aspirants as scheduled by the GOSIEC, with nomination forms expected to be returned on January 25, just as verification of candidates is expected to hold January 31.

According to the guidelines of activities issued by the GOSIEC, February 23 will mark the end of political campaign activities while the distribution of sensitive election materials is to take place the following day. Election across the 11 council areas will take place on February 25, with results to be declared the following day.