Jigawa Reps By-Elections: APC, NNPP Pick Candidates

…Ruling Party Vows to reclaim Seat

By Mohammed Abubakar Dutse

Ahead of the August 16, by-election in the Garki/Babura Federal Constituency, two of the leading political parties in Jigawa state, the All Progressives Congress, (APC) and the New Nigeria People’s Party, (NNPP) on Saturday selected their candidates for the polls.

In their respective primaries held at the headquarters of Babura local government area on Saturday, the APC elected Mr. Rabi’u Mukhtar as the flag bearer, while the NNPP elected Adamu Sabo as its candidate.

The main opposition party the Peoples’ Democratic Party, (PDP) had earlier on Tuesday, July 15, screened and confirmed Mr. Auwalu Isa Manzo as its candidate for the poll.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) had set aside August 16 for the conduct of the election flowing the sudden death of the incumbent, Isa Dogonyaro of the APC on May 10, 2024 in Abuja.

It would be recalled that the state governor, Umar Namadi had on July 10 unveiled Mukhtar as the consensus candidate for the polls, after which the party’s nomination form was purchased and handed over to him at the Government House Dutse.

Reacting, the state chairman of the APC Aminu Sani Gumel described the emergence of Mukhtar as the beginning of the return of the party to the lower legislative chambers after more one year two months of absence.

The APC chieftain, who assured of the party’s total victory in the August 16 By-elections said the party would soon set the machinery in place to begin a house-to-house, door-to-door campaigns to woo the electorate.

“Besides we’re going to showcase the achievements of the administration under the leadership of Governor Umar Namadi in order to convince them to give us their mandate once again and I can assure you we’re going to win the election insha’allah.”

Also speaking with reporters the Special Adviser to the governor on political matters, Garba Muhammad Bulet said the party was only awaiting the election day to repeat its success.

Muhammad, who was a member of the 7th assembly in the state said, “We’ve been waiting for the day to come so that we can repeat the successes we recorded during the 2023 general election.

The official who admitted the existence of coalition in the state, however said the APC was not afraid of the opposition parties with their coalition noting that they should learn how to form a successful coalition “from the master himself, which is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

However, Sabo, in a separate chat, expressed confidence that his party the NNPP would triumph, hinging his optimism on what he described as the high level of poverty being inflicted on Nigerians by the APC-led government’s policy especially on the removal of fuel subsidy.

According to him, “If Nigerians go ahead and elect the APC and their candidate in the forthcoming and 2027 elections, despite their apparent failure, it would go a long way in showing that the they’ve indeed not learnt their lessons.