PDP faction rejects Sokoto State governorship primaries results

Sokoto - A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Sokoto
State on Thursday rejected the results of the state's governorship
primary conducted on December 8.
The media recalls that the 3-man electoral panel which conducted the
election and declared the results was headed by Sen. Usman Dukku.

The election was won by Sen. Abdallah Wali, who polled 547 votes,
while the state’s Deputy Governor, Alhaji Mukhtari Shagari, got a
vote, even though he withdrew from the race.

Sen. Abubakar Gada got 193 votes, while the former Minister of
Transport as well as Sports , Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman, got no vote, as
boycotted the poll.

The trio of Shagari, Suleiman and Gada had petitioned the national
leadership of the party, calling for the cancellation of the results and
the conduct of fresh polls.

They cited some irregularities which they alleged marred the
elections, alleging that, it was illegal as “ghost” delegates were
substituted with the original 984 accredited delegates.

The state chairman of the party, Alhaji Ibrahim Milgoma, recently told
news men that the election results still stood.

“As far as we are concerned, there was an election which was won by
Wali, and we are ready for the 2015 general polls even now,” Milgoma,
added.

However, addressing news men in Sokoto on Thursday, a faction of
state executives of the party dissociated themselves from the
election.

The group spoke through the state's organising secretary of the
party, Alhaji Usman Yabo.

“As far as we are concerned, there was no gubernatorial election in
Sokoto State, and we are hereby dissociating ourselves from its
results.”

“We are calling on the national leadership of the party to
dispassionately and urgently attend to the petitions which arose from
it and we want it cancelled.”
“We are however law abiding members of the party and we therefore
want the national leadership of the party to employ its internal
mechanism to resolve the impasse,” Yabo stressed.

- NAN