From Mohammed Nasir Shuaibu BAUCHI
The Director of Media and Publicity for Senator Halliru Dauda Jika gubernatorial aspiration campaign organization, Comrade Haruna Muhammad has debunked rumours over decamping to New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).
Accordingly, said that the aspirant is still in the All Progressives Congress (APC) despite the pleas by some of his support to defect to another political party after losing the primary elections.
Recalled that Senator Halliru Jika was among the Bauchi state APC governorship aspirants that contested the recent party primary elections but lost to Nigeria’s immediate past Air Marshal, Ambassador Sadique Abubakar who emerged as party’s gubernatorial candidate for the 2023 polls.
“We recently conducted a statewide survey across the three senatorial zones to sample opinions as to whether or not Senator Jika should cross carpet to another political party from the APC, but the responses for the defection is yet nothing to write home about”, Comr. Muhammad said.
Muhammad was speaking Monday at a reception organized by some non-political organization under the auspices of Bauchi Midtown Aid Organization to show unalloyed support to the senator for his positive contributions in their charitable services to the society.
He, disclosed that the senator has hatched a plan to sponsor medical outreach across the twenty local government areas of the state, and directed the organizations to evolve a comprehensive work plan to enable the bodies undertake the outreach services in the 323 electoral wards of the state.
He, however, played delegates to the just party primaries, saying they raked in the exercise of what a director in the public service could not acquire throughout his career services, and called on intellectual citizens to join partisan politics in order to make wise choices during such political exercises.
While pointing out that delegates are decisions making engines of the society, the media chief called for continued amendments to the Electoral Act to provide for direct open party primaries for the emergence of qualified, patriotic and capacity leaders to run the affairs of the society.
The director noted with dismay the fielding of some unproductive, candidates for various elective offices when productive and vibrant youths abound, saying a situation where delegates vote on cash and carry basis attest to mockery on democracy.
He recalled the enormous support Jika provided to various charitable and philanthropic, even political organizations, as when in 2019 the APC lost election to the opposition PDP in the state, Jika stood firm in supporting the party secretariat in rent payment, mobility provision and even staff remunerations.
