Five persons, including a student of the Federal University, Gusau, Samaila Sani Afro, were killed in the wake of violence that attended the primaries of Zamfara state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Gusau, the state capital.
Afro, who hailed from Birnin Ruwa area of Gusau, was killed alongside three others in Tsafe and one in Bungudu local government.
Condoling the families of the deceased, Governor Abubakar Yari condemned the act of violence during the polls as uncalled for, inhumane and barbaric.
He described the alleged sponsors of the thugs as unpatriotic and undemocratic citizens, vowing to ensure that the miscreants were arrested and brought to book, irrespective of their status.
Speaking earlier, the father of Samaila Sani Afro, promised to take the matter to appropriate law court to seek redress, urging security agencies in the state to ensure the hoodlums were arrested and prosecuted.
Following the violence, the exercise, according to the chairman, National Working Committee of the state APC primaries, Dr.
Abu A. Fari, was cancelled.
The deceased persons had since been buried in their respective homes according to Islamic rites.
Group calls for state of emergency Following the development, the Zamfara state Civil Society Network, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari, to, as a matter of urgency, declare a state of emergency in the state as a quick step toward stopping further threat to lives and property in the state.
Chairman of the group, Malam Anas Sani Anka, who made the call at a press conference in Gusau yesterday, noted that with the level brutality witnessed in the state during the primaries, if the state of emergency is not declared, anarchy would become a common place in the state.
The network noted that, with Governor Yari at the helm of affairs, the conduct and outcome of the APC primaries would not be acceptable to the people.
To ensure neutrality and fairness to all contenders as well as the people, Anka noted that the President needed to wade into the political development of the state by invoking the constitution to arrest the trend.
The group further noted that, citizens, especially women and youths, were allegedly molested and decisively dealt with by the agent of the state government simply because they objected to the governor’s preferred candidate as the party’s flag bearer and possible successor.
The network also lamented the rate at which innocent lives were being lost in Gusau, Kauran Namoda, Bungudu and Tsafe during the fracas, noting that, the state police chief and other heads of the security agencies needed to investigate the whole scenario, and decisively deal with those overzealous agents of government, for peace to return to the state.
They also called on the electoral panel to take cautious measures against the sitting governor before leading the party to a historic political loss, warning that people of the state have lost hope in the APC-led government.
Another threatens legal action Similarly, the Northern Youth Assembly (NYA) a NonGovernmental Organisation, has threatened to drag Zamfara state government to a Federal High Court sitting in Gusau, over the killings resulting from the primary.
National Chairman of the group, Comrade Munnir Haidara Kaura, who disclosed this to newsmen in Gusau, yesterday, regretted that innocent lives were lost following the non-adoption of the governor’s choice as candidate.
He specifically lamented the way a serving local government council chair, allegedly shot at two people with his pistol.
The group similarly condemned a serving member of the House of Representatives, for ‘ordering’ the killing of an innocent voter during the fracas, as well as those killed in some other places.
While lashing at the police for their poor handling of the situation, they told the governor that “you cannot win the heart the people to vote for your anointed candidates when you are hiring thugs to shoot at people, when you are buying arms to thugs to harass same people from their polling units.
World over, elections are won based on citizens solidarity and acceptance, and this where Governor Yari has failed.
“We will drag the governor and all his alleged associates to court for sponsoring political killings and murder of innocent souls simply because of their selfish political interest.” On why their group accused the governor and left out the opposition within the party, Haiadara said, “it is the governor’s resistance to allow for realistic primaries to be conducted since the inception that caused the anger of the people, especially that, people are tired of his bad leadership in the state.” Governors meet Buhari And in their feedback mechanism, some APC governors, yesterday met President Buhari to brief him on the situation of the party’s primaries in their various states.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, Governor Rochas Okorocha , who is also facing a tough time over his decision to have his son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, as the party’s flag bearer and possible successor, said they were in the State House for possible solution to their travails.
The meeting which had eight governors, including Okorocha in attendance, lasted for one hour.
The other governors are; Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara, Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun, Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo, Abubakar Bello of Niger, Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi, Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo and Simon Lalong of Plateau states.
Speaking briefly with State House correspondents, Okorocha said they were in the Villa to “review the various crises characterising our primaries, especially the APC with a view to finding solution.” “So, we are looking for a way out in this regard.
We are going to find solution, our party believes in justice, equity, and fairness.
We are requesting that let the right thing be done and let everyone contest the elections,” he said.
Although the party’s governorship and senatorial primaries were concluded in many states, some others still have issues.
…Meet Oshiomhole too Similarly, the governors also met with the Adams Aliyu Oshiomholeled NWC and brief on him on developments within their states over the primaries.
In a related development, the NWC has condemned the “unauthorised primaries” held in Edo state into the Senate, House of Representatives and House of Assembly.
“The exercise conducted by unauthorised persons in collaboration with the Party’s Edo State Working Committee is hereby null and void,” the APC headquarters said in a statement by its spokesperson, Yekini Nabena.
Nabena said a primary election committee under the chairmanship of Farida Suleiman will “be in Edo State later today (Thursday) to conduct the primaries into the Senate, House of Representatives and House of Assembly.
“The committee will make available the list of aspirants screened for the exercise and will conduct a transparent primary election in accordance with the guidelines and constitution of the APC.
“We admonish all party members in Edo State to cooperate with the committee to ensure an orderly, peaceful, transparent and credible exercise.”
