By Atinuke Alao
Disagreements over the sharing formular of the structure of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bauchi State in preparation for the formal defection of Governor Bala Mohammed have ended the Governor’s plan to move to the ruling party.
Bala is of the crisis-ridden Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) whose control is now at the behest of the loyalists of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Wike and Bauchi Governor are currently at loggerhead over the soul of the PDP, resulting in a series of litigation. Bala is with Tanimu Turaki-led faction of the beleaguered opposition party.
However, in spite of the move of some stakeholders of the APC in Bauchi State to scuttle the plan of the Governor to settle for the ruling party, Bala proceeded with his talks with the leadership of the party, which had reportedly ended in a deadlock.
The development was attributed to the refusal of the APC stakeholders in the state to allow the Governor have 60 per cent structure of the party while the existing structure takes the remaining 40 per cent.
It was learnt that the governor and his supporters have declared their openness to align with other political parties, noting that plans are underway to consider fresh options for possible defection from the ward to the state level.
The Chairman of the Turaki-led PDP faction in the state, Sama’ila Burga, who spoke to Journalists on Saturday, said the APC had shown it was not ready to accommodate the PDP structure and the state government.
Burga disclosed that the APC initiated talks through the governor, involving its national leadership and the Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, who visited Bauchi to persuade Mohammed to join the party.
He said the discussions, however, stalled after the APC failed to agree to the 60–40 sharing formula, which he noted, had been adopted in similar defections in other states.
“This is how it has been done in other places where governors defected to APC. They rejected this formula and we have closed that discussion. You cannot expect a government bringing its structure from ward level to the state not to have control of the party.
“We have called for this press conference at the instance of His Excellency, the Governor, who is leading the discussions,” he said.
Burga further stated that after extensive consultations with stakeholders, the PDP faction resolved to discontinue the talks.
“After careful consideration, it became clear that the conditions collectively advanced for such a political realignment were not accepted by the APC leadership. In light of this, we want to announce that the discussions have not yielded a conclusive outcome and are hereby formally discontinued,” he said.
Burga noted that the party is now exploring alternative political platforms.
He said “While we appreciate the outreach and engagement by the APC, we wish to state unequivocally that the process has now been brought to a close. Consequently, the PDP in Bauchi State, in consultation with His Excellency and other critical stakeholders, is actively considering all available political options other than the APC to determine the most suitable path forward in line with the aspirations and best interests of the people of Bauchi State.”
Visited 22 times, 1 visit(s) today
