By Correspondent in Minna
The former Governor of Niger state and now, factional leader of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, has appealed to his supporters and disenfranchised members of the party in the last week’s factional Congress not to be intimidated.
Aliyu also encouraged the aggrieved members to be calm and to resist temptations of dumping the PDP in the wake of the leadership wranglings threatening the foundation of the main opposition party in Niger state for months now.
The former Governor made the plea as he received party members, loyalists and admirers who were in Paiko, near Minna, the state capital to welcome him after almost a month he was last seen in his home.
Our Correspondent reports that the former governor, who holds the traditional title, ‘Talban Minna’, was last seen in the state during the last Eid-el-kabir celebrations, when he hosted a cultural fiesta and conferred traditional titles on some of his Aides at his Minna residence.
Addressing the jubilant crowd of supporters in his house, Aliyu enjoined the PDP members to remain calm and refuse to be intimidated by those he described as ‘biased minded persons’ trying to create bigger problems for the party in the state.
Describing as a ‘sham’ state party congress by a faction of the party penultimate week in liaison with ‘a bought over North-Central leadership of the party’, former Governor Aliyu assured that the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) was ‘looking into it’.
The faction PDP leader, who debunked insinuations that he was lobbying to join the ruling the All Progressives Congress (APC),assured supporters that the party at the national level was taken aback by the ‘illegality and brazen abuse of rule of law by some desperate politicians’.
He called for calm amongst all agitated and restive minds over what he said was done by a select group within the party, insisting that ‘what was done in Niger PDP at the state secretariat about a week ago, is not only absurd but totally wrong’.
“Those who thought that they could seize the realms of PDP executive in Niger state by whipping ethnic sentiments and displaying other forms of bigotry, would in no distant time, be placed in their deserved positions”, Babangida Aliyu said in a statement signed by his Media aide, Bala Bitrus.
Appealing to genuine PDP members in Niger state to remain calm and await the unfolding events, former Governor assured that all necessary steps were being worked out to give the party in the state a sense of order, sanity and diligence.
Aliyu, who described his rumoured dumping the PDP as laughable admonished members against leaving the party, pointing out that, “Those who organised and took part in the sham exercise are enemies of our great party in Niger state. Please, don’t leave or abandon the PDP”.
“What took place last week according to the former Governor is the handiwork of ‘self seeking persons that populated the faction and organised the congress without giving notice to all stakeholders for the congress’.
Aliyu alleged that the former state Chairman of the party, Tanko Beji and former Deputy Governor, Dr. Shem Zagbayi Nuhu led group excluded others from the said congress and wondered if democracy could be so manipulated and muzzled.
The Reporters recalls that on Saturday 7th of August through Sunday 8th of August, factional Congress was held at the state party secretariat in Minna and Tanko Beji was declared winner with 2, 092 votes against, Engineer Ahmed Muktar who got only 2 votes and 8 votes voided.
The Deputy Governor of Benue state, Mr.Benson Abounu as the Chairman of the state PDP Congress Committee presided over the exercise which also had in attendance, Senator Zaynab Kure and two former Ministers in the state, Professor Jerry Gana and Alhaji Tanko Achituwo.
Others were; the PDP National Financial Secretary, Abdullahi Maibasira, the governorship candidate of the party in the 2019 election, Muhammad Umar Nasko, former Speaker Niger State House of Assembly, Hon. Musa Ma’ali and former Secretary to State Government (SSG), Ndako Kpaki.
