The chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kano state, Rabiu Bichi, has accused the administration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) of rewarding violence during last Saturday’s supplementary polls in the state.
Abdullahi Ganduje, incumbent governor and candidate of the APC, who was trailing Abba Yusuf, PDP candidate in the March 9 election, won after the supplementary election.
Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Thursday, Bichi debunks the position of Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) that PDP was behind the violence.
According to Bichi, it was unfortunate that the organisation “took sides with Ganduje and his cohorts whose sponsored thugs perpetuated massive votes buying , ballots stuffing and votes rigging.”
“By that such posture, BMO and its sponsors have clearly shown that violence pays under the APC led government since those who perpetrate were being rewarded handsomely by INEC as we have witnessed in kano state,” he said.
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“The APC benefitted from thuggery orchestrated by the deputy governor and some of the commissioners.
“We make bold to say that nothing could be further from the truth as there are verifiable evidence at the disposal of our agents, election monitors and well meaning citizens of Kano state to prove how the APC and their hired thugs under the watchful eyes of security agents assaulted and disenfranchised our supporters in the desperate bid to keep Ganduje in power at all cost.
“It is on record that the state deputy governor, Nasiru Gawuna and the state commissioner for local government, Alhaji Sule Garo were taken into custody for taking the laws into their hands by disrupting the final Collation of results at the Nassarawa local government area collation centre when defeat stared Ganduje in the face.
“That uncouth and shameful act provided the alibi to INEC to declare the governorship election clearly won by Abba Kabiru Yusuf inconclusive.
“The Gama ward incidence in Nasarawa local government replete with voters intimidation, votes buying and ballot box stuffing, as witnessed in all others local governments provides an ample evidence of Ganduje’s hypocrisy on the issue.”
Bichi restated that the party would recover the mandate “freely” given to its candidate.