APC ward congresses: Group calls on ICPC to act

A political pressure group known as ‘All Progressive Network’, Bauchi State Chapter has described the last Saturday ward congresses of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) in Bauchi state as a “Democratic fraud a scandal, worthy of attracting the attention of the ICPC and other anti-corruption agencies in the country”.

The while reacting to the confusion that trailed the conduct of the congresses in Bauchi State called for the total cancellation of the purported exercise to have been carried out on Saturday 5th May 2018.

Chairman of the group, Shehu Barau Ningi who stated this Tuesday during a press conference at the NUJ Secretariat in Bauchi, said that the exercise should be repeated by a different Committee from the national secretariat of the party.

He said that contrary to the declaration of the Bauchi state government and the outgoing leadership of the party in the state that the Congress was a success, it is a known fact that no congress took place in the state just as he accused the government, state leadership of APC and the state Congress committee of their connivance in order to manipulate the results of the Congress to their favour.

He alleged that “Everybody is a living witness to the fact that no congress took place in the state.

No member of the electoral committee was seen at all the venues of the congresses despite the fact that voters waited from morning to evening without seeing anyone”

Baurau Ningi who sometimes last year resigned from the cabinet of the state due to irreconcilable political difference further stated that “In very few cases where the electoral officials appeared, they quickly sneaked away and disappeared when they realized the impossibility and danger of imposing government candidates on the electorate”

“The following question clearly revealed this dubious arrangement. Why did the 7 member state election committee decided not to report to the state in good time to enable it to make adequate arrangement for the Congress, but reported on Friday evening, just a few hours to the Congress?”, he asked.

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The former Commissioner of Budget and Planning further alleged that the State electoral committee members hid, making their whereabouts unknown and inaccessible thereby faulting the rationale behind the selection of the 3 member local government area election committees for the 20 LGAs without a proper stakeholder meeting.

The Chairman also alleged that the Appeal committee has deliberately refused to report most of the complaints of the congresses which according to him was done with the intention to achieve their dubious motives.