Alhaji MD Yusuf is a frontline politician in Sokoto state and staunch member of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP since 1999. He speaks on development within the party, concluding that former Governor Attahiru Bafarawa is no asset to the party. SAMUEL OGIDAN reports
Decision to head for the court
Every person in this country, if he is law abiding, goes to court as the final resort and arbiter. It is the last hope of a common citizen as they say, and it is true. It is place where the authority adjudicates and gives verdict on what is right, according to the law and what is the truth. It is a place for quarrels, or to disgrace anyone. We went to court as bonafide and law abiding members of the PDP to seek redress over injustice associated with the purported elections that ushered in the so-called new PDP Sokoto state executives that emerged against the laid down rule and procedure of the PDP, against common sense and against the constitution of our great party.
What are laws that you claimed had been violated?
First and foremost, the PDP as the ruling party since 1999 to date, and the largest party in the African continent, has laid down rules and regulations enshrined in its constitution based on the principle of democracy, equity, justice and fairness. It is a law in the party that anyone who comes into it, must at least spend 12 months before he presents himself for any election. Secondly, for any election to take place, forms are being sold to all aspirants for any position, which would later on be used to ascertain the credibility and genuineness of all candidates.
Even President Jonathan entered the presidential primaries with at least 5 people before he emerged the PDP candidate. So, if Mr President can do that, who is then immune to enter elect ions with other contestants in the PDP simply because he has the backing of someone? What happened in Sokoto PDP is that, when former Governor Attahiru Bafarawa defected into it, I happened to be among the first to congratulate him and expressed our joy for having his likes into our fold. But alas, little did I know that he is a calamity to our great party.
I was among the contingent of Yusuf Sulieman who paid him a welcome visit when he announced his defection to PDP in his residence in Sokoto, where he sworn with Almighty Allah that he came to PDP with a clean mind and to help strengthen the party to a greater height in the state and the nation as a whole. He also swore in the name of Allah that he did not have a candidate and that his candidate is whoever merges as the people’s choice. Surprisingly, less than 40 days with that remarks, it became apparent to all of us that, he is lying, and has a conceived agenda to pocket the party and do as he wishes with it. We realized that, he came to sell out the party and used it as weapon to fight his own selfish political battle, at the detriment of all of us who laboured for many years to keep the party intact and vibrant. And to say the truth, by God, we will not allow him to do that. If not for an agenda, democracy is all about contest and popular support of the majority of the electorates both within and without the party. For that, whoever is afraid of a free and fair election, he is not a democrat and a politician. If you have the grassroots support, you will not feel apprehensive against anything, and would certainly prefer to contest in a free and fair field.
To take you down the history, in 2007 it was Alu Magatakarda Wamakko that expelled Bafarawa from the ANPP on account of his sheer arrogance, selfishness and blockheadedness and he went and established the DPP when he was the out-going governor. He supported a good candidate and material for governorship who was Maigari Dingyadi, but due to Bafarwa’s support for him, he lost. Bafarwa left the party he formed (DPP) for ACN, but met a resilient and strong politicians with experience, knowledge and enlightenment. He also left and returned to the ANPP. He was forced out prior to 2007 polls. In ANPP, he supported governorship candidate, Yusha’u against Alu Magatakarda Wamakko, but they all lost gallantly.
Prayer at the court
We want it to do justice to us. They have conducted a sham they called elections which we totally reject. Our people from rural areas used their hard earned money and bought form to contest various posts in the executive levels of our party in their respective local government areas. They have filled their forms and returned them to the party office. In fact there was a contestant who had been barred from entering the party office to return his form. Is this democracy we are fighting to build? Just some few days, we heard stories that the executive had reached a consensus and nominated some Bafarawa boys as party executives without the knowledge and consent of other aspirants in the LGAs. If the so-called executive knows that there will not be an election, why did they sell out forms to contestants? Our grouse with Bafarawa is that, he abhors justice, truth, decorum and rule of law as a politician. He cannot destroy our party in our eyes and we allow him to do that.
How did he scheme you out as a new person?
When he defected to PDP we expressed our happiness and joy. We never knew that he will flout the PDP rules and regulation to the extent of trying to ridicule and hijack the whole party and put it in his pocket. Some PDP officials were brought from Zamfara and Niger states as caretaker executive members, before we realized he converted them to his side – bribing them, eating three square meals in his house day and night and stuff like that. We woke up to our realisation that he had hijacked the whole process against out trust. From our investigation, he is trying to pocket the whole party and made his brother a deputy governor during the forthcoming elections.
Why is it only a governorship aspirant, Yusuf Suleiman fighting this alleged injustice?
I want people to know that this fight against Bafarawa antics in the Sokoto PDP is not because of one governorship aspirant or another. We are talking as bonafide members of the PDP, not as supporters of one candidate or the other. There is no single governorship aspirants that influence us to go to court. We just feel it is our fight and our right to seek legal redress against injustice, so that compliance with the PDP constitution prevails. In fact, up till now, some PDP governorship aspirant are still coming out, then how can we all be influenced by them? We are doing it on our own.
Our appeal
I am appealing to Adamu Muazu that, Bafarawa is now making a propaganda that, Muazu is his personal friend, and nothing is going to happen to him. So, he should demarcate between personal relationship and sensitive political issues that could undermine the success of the PDP in any state. The PDP national secretariat must know that, without Bafarawa, we can win election any time, any day. His defection into PDP did not add anything to us success, rather it is now trying to weaken our structures and sell off the party.
