Zamfara APC Reacts As Gov Matawalle Joins the Ruling Party
- More reactions continue to trail the recent defection of Governor Bello Matawalle to the APC from the PDP
- The APC in Zamfara state met to finetune some strategies as the party moves forward to a new phase
- Major stakeholders in the party are already working out an arrangement that will ensure the interests of the APC is protected
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Gusau - The Zamfara state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has reacted to the defection of Governor Bello Matawalle to the party from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In a statement sent to Legit.ng by Senator Kabiru Marafa, the party reeled out its stance on the defection of the governor and the steps taken so far.
Source: Getty Images
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Key demands of the APC stakeholders in Zamfara state
The statement which was signed by Dr. Mika’ilu Barau on behalf of Senator Marafa, also informed party stakeholders on the activities of the party hierarchy at the national level to ensure a level playing ground for all members of the APC in Zamfara state.
Part of the statement read:
“As part of the intermediate outcomes of our engagements, we requested that the planned decamping ceremony at Gusau should be delayed until a tripartite committee comprising the leadership of APC in Zamfara state, the decamping governor and the national leadership of APC meet to agree on the terms of the decamping.
“We were made to understand that the ceremony could not be postponed due to the level of preparations reached.
“On this note, the Zamfara state chapter of APC under the leadership of His Excellency, the former governor of Zamfara, Hon. Abdulaziz Yari, proposed to opt-out of the decamping ceremony and allow the national leadership to proceed while the party plans to take appropriate actions.
“The national leadership of the party informed the party chapter of the special appeal of President Muhammadu Buhari for the former governor of Zamfara state, Hon. Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar to participate in the ceremony.
“On the request of the caretaker chairman through Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna state, the state and national leadership of the party delegated Senator Kabiru Garba Marafa (CON) to brief members on the development and the terms of the engagements in Kaduna.
“One important condition of the engagement is to consider the event happening in Gusau as a mere ceremony that should be guided by the proposed tripartite meeting of the state leadership of APC, Governor Matawalle group with him in person, and the national leadership of the party.
“This tripartite meeting should hold within one week after the ceremony in Gusau.”
Party stakeholders meet, warns governor to stick to rules
The statement noted that agreements reached during the tripartite meeting will be closely monitored by all the parties.
It added that any attempt by the governor to violate the terms of the agreement will be contested.
Basheer Ibraheem Ibn-abdullah, a social media influencer in Zamfara state, shared photos of the APC meeting on his Facebook page.
He stated that the meeting was held at Bafra Hotel in Kaduna state where Senator Marafa held a special session with party members.
Meanwhile, despite the defection of Matawalle to the APC, the state deputy governor, Muhammad Gusau, has expressed his resolve to remain in the PDP.
Gusau said he remains a member of the opposition PDP despite the move of his boss to the APC.
The deputy governor also stated that he is ready to assure the position of the PDP leader in the state.
In a related development, recent media reports indicate that three more PDP governors may join the ruling APC ahead of the 2023 elections.
The governors mentioned are Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia state, Ifeanyi Ugwanyi of Enugu state, and Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa state.
The PDP, however, dismissed the reports, saying the governors are going nowhere.
Source: Legit.ng
