Former Governor, Ex-House of Reps Member, 1 Other Defect from PDP to APC, Party Reacts
- The Kaduna chapter of the PDP has stated that the departure of former governor Ramalan Yero, ex-Rep. Godfrey Gaiya and Tanko Rossi will not weaken the party
- Felix Hyat, the Kaduna PDP chairman, said the party remains strong in the state, holding a majority of the Senate and House of Representatives seats
- Hyat said the defectors were mere paperweights who had no political influence in the northwestern state
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FCT, Abuja - The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)'s chapter in Kaduna state has said that the exit of former governor Ramalan Yero and ex-Rep. Godfrey Gaiya would not affect the party’s strength.
Felix Hyat, the Kaduna PDP chairman, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday, October 8.
Source: Getty Images
Legit.ng reports that Yero and Gaiya recently left the PDP.
While Gaiya who is currently an aide to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, defected to the APC, Yero is yet to announce his next destination.
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Tanko Rossi, the “generous” super delegate who openly shared millions of naira with his constituents after he returned from the PDP presidential primary election has also dumped the party for the APC.
Their defection cannot hurt PDP, says Hyat
Hyat said the defection of Yero, Gaiya and Rossi would “never” affect the PDP’s fortunes, claiming that none of them had any political weight.
His words:
“They were mere paper weights. They had no influence. We are not going to miss any of them.
“None of them has said that the PDP maltreated him. We did not do anything to offend anyone.
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“They came on their own volition. None of them did not get a good share even above their contributions to the party.
“The former governor became a commissioner of finance without being a member of the PDP.
“As a sitting governor, he contested and lost the governorship seat in 2015. He contested for the ticket to seek the seat later but lost the primaries.
“As for Gaiya, he got two terms in House of Representatives and left after losing elections.
“He came even lower, politically speaking, and sought to be a local government chairman but lost the primaries woefully.
“I am told that he was promised the then vacant Kaduna State ministerial slot if he defected, but it has been taken now. He may have do another political arithmetic. It is up to him.
“So, their exit cannot pain anyone. They are not strong politicians with any particular support base.”
PDP is the leading party in Kaduna, says Hyat
Hyat further said that PDP was the leading party in Kaduna, having won the three senate seats and 10 out of 16 House of Representatives seats.
Speaking on the forthcoming governorship elections in Imo, Bayelsa and Kogi, the Kaduna PDP chair expressed optimism that his party has a good chance of picking the three seats.
Former Reps deputy minority whip dumps PDP
In a related development, a former Deputy Minority Whip of the House of Representatives, Fatima Binta Bello, has resigned from the PDP.
Bello tendered her resignation letter to the PDP chairman in the Shongom ward, Shongom LGA of Gombe State, on Thursday, October 5.
She said the decision to quit the PDP was hard but was taken after a wide consultation with her associates.
Source: Legit.ng
