Senator Aishat Jumai Alhassan popularly known as Mama Taraba has dump the All Progressive Congress APC for United Democratic Party, UDP a day after she resigned as minister for women and social development under President Muhamadu Buhari’s administration.
The former minister also accused the national chairman of the ruling APC of bring initiatives that are capable of tarnishing the party.
She termed Adams Oshiomhole leadership of unleashing unjust treatment to members of the party who nurse and financed APC from the beginning.
She said the leadership of APC and the National Working Committee of the party who denied her clearance for the party gubernatorial primaries have succeeded in tarnishing chance of the party in Taraba State.
Alhassan, who addressed a press conference at her residence on Saturday, in Jalingo after registering as a full member of the UDP and picked the expression of interest and nomination form of the party to contest as governor of Taraba State in 2019, also said she has rescinded her appointment as the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development in the President Muhammad Buhari-led Federal Government.
She further stated that APC has become inconsequential in Taraba state after she moved with all executives of the party from the 169 wards of the state to UDP, stressing that their chances were minimal in the forthcoming general elections.
“My defection to the UDP was as a result of my being screened out by the national chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomole who decided in his wisdom to say that I was disqualified and not fit to contest for election.
“I was unfairly treated and great injustice was done to me by that action. This is because I am a pioneer member of APC and we conducted the registration of the party because I was in the new PDP when the merger was done.
“I contested election in 2015 in this same APC which I was the gubernatorial flag bearer of the party. I was also screened subsequently as a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria without any hitches
“To my greatest shock on Thursday, I heard I was not cleared, which I was confident of because when I went for the screening, they only asked for two things, which include my membership card of APC and my PVC which I presented.
“Even in the report that was presented to the national working committee shows I was cleared along with my 10 brothers contesting with me in the party.
“Oshiomhole on his own and not the National Working Committee insisted that I should not be allowed to contest and everybody I got to understand told him that it was not right, just like they told him that it was not right to swear in another chairman when there was already a chairman in place for the past three months and was duly elected.
“As it is now Taraba APC has two chairmen, one Oshiomhole s Chairman and the other Chief Oyegun’s chairman who was properly elected.
“With that confusion he created, the APC office in Taraba state is under police care and under lock since the fake chairman he installed came to take over last Friday, which resulted into crises and never knew that mine was coming.
She continued by saying “he (Oshiomhole) did not give any reason for screening me out and because of that, I resolved that if I was not good enough in 2019 having contested in 2015 under the same party for the same position, then I am not good enough to remain in the cabinet as minister under the same party at the federal level and that was why I terminated my appointment and simultaneously rescinded my membership of the party.
“Today, I joined the United Democratic Party, UDP and obtained their form to compete and contest for governorship position in Taraba state. hey only disqualified me in APC but forgetting that God can give a person power in any party.
“Oshiomhole does not give power, and if he thinks he is pushing me out to make way for another person, that is a plus for me politically because it means I am unbeatable.
She added that “He (Oshiomhole) gave me money when I was contesting in 2015 which I was grateful for and only saw him when he was contesting for the national chairman of the APC which I pledged my unalloyed support for him and was also part of those that affirmed him as the sole candidate. Now that the APC that I fought for and nurtured with others is now marketable, they now decide to set me aside? Its alright, God is always in control.
“He has done his worse by pushing me out of the party so he should wait and see what God will do for me and to him because APC has now become the weakest party in Taraba because I have moved to UDP with all the executive of the APC from all the ward level to the state and our countless supporters.
“Oshiomhole is there to kill the APC, because the president was not in town when he did all this thing and I think the President should call him to order. If they don’t call him to order and remove him, he is going to kill APC for them because we have moved on.”
It will be recalled that earlier on Saturday, the former Minister, addressed two separate letter to president Muhammadu Buhari to officially inform him of her resignation from his cabinet as minister of women affairs and social development and also another to the APC in Sarkin Dawaki ward, Jalingo to rescind her membership of the party which was copied to the National Vice Chairman of the APC, (North East), State Chairman of the APC and Jalingo Local government chairman of APC.