Desmond Mgboh, Kano
Kano State government has rejected in totality the position of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) on the supplementary governorship elections held on Saturday in the state.
The CUPP last night declared that the supplementary election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission in the state was marred by violence, over voting, intimidation and voter disenfranchisement.
Speaking during a press conference in his office on Tuesday, Kano State the Commissioner for Information, Youth and Culture, Mallam Muhammed Garba, said the position of the coalition on the election was a fraud. He added that it was yet another exploit aimed at misrepresenting the true state of affairs about the supplementary governorship poll.
Mallam Garba said that the coalition was peopled largely by sympathisers of the Kwankwassiyya members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), adding that it was not a surprise that they took this position to smear the creditability of the exercise.
The commissioner also debunked the claim that a number of party supporters lost their lives during the governorship elections in the state.
“Any person with any information regarding the person (s) that was killed in the supplementary elections should come forward and give us the names of such a person and where he or she resides in the state,” he stated
“In fact, the PDP was claiming that about two of its people were killed during the conduct of the re-run election in the state and they said that the people that were killed were in Nassarawa Local Government,” he added.
“We went personally as a government to investigate whether there was such incident. We went to the various hospitals in the state; we talked to the stakeholders in Nassarawa irrespective of the political inclination. But believe me, we did not see, we have not heard and we have no report of any killing during the conduct of the exercise.
“Let me say that this same position of ours had been repeated severally by the police authorities in the state. I want to use this opportunity to debunk the allegation that somebody was killed during the exercise and like I said, if there is anybody who had any record of any such death, we as a government would want to have such information.”
The state government also dismissed the rumours in the social media that demonstrations were held in the state capital to protest the outcome of the governorship supplementary elections in the state.
“I read it on one of the platforms that they had burnt about 20 houses in the state. When I read it, I had to ask which parts of Kano did it happen and the person on the other side did not respond.”
“That too is untrue. There is no proof of that. Of course, there was jubilation in different parts of the state to celebrate the verdict of the supplementary polls,” he said, adding that Kano was peaceful as people were going about their normal businesses.