Southern Kaduna Splits Over Choice Of Governorship Candidate

By Lola Idahosa, Kaduna

‎Fresh  signs  have  emerged that the Southern Kaduna Senatorial district whose votes is always adjudged to be the deciding factor as to who becomes the Governor of the state is divided on who to support in the April 11th governorship election.

While several groups have indicated their support for the incumbent governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero of the Peoples De‎mocratic Party (PDP), others said their support is for the All Progressive Congress (APC) candidate Mallam Nasir El-rufai.

But addressing a press conference in Kaduna, a group from southern Kaduna under the auspices of Concerned citizens of Southern Kaduna said they have agreed to support only a southern Kaduna candidate for governorship.

Meanwhile, former Deputy Governor of the state James Bawa Magaji who is the governorship candidate of the Labour Party in the state and his counter part in the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA)‎ Polycarp Gankon are candidates from southern Kaduna zone.

The group however said, a consensus has been reached by relevant stakeholders to support the labour party candidate in the forthcoming elections.

‎But in a swift reaction, the APGA governorship candidate Mr Gankon who equally addressed newsmen barely 20 minutes after the first group finished its address in the same venue dissociated himself from any consensus agreement, saying, such meeting never held and he  was not prepared to step down for any candidate.

According to him‎, “money has been offered me to step down but I refused, I am not a stooge for anybody, my candidacy is not for sale and I cannot be identified with failure.”

‎”I am going to take legal action for the group to produce names of those who attended the meeting where it was said that I am not ready to step down, “I have never sat down with anybody to discuss my withdrawal from the race, I am very much in the race” he stressed.

The concerned citizens of Southern Kaduna however blamed elites from the zone as being behind their political predicaments of not being able to speak with one voice.

“We have however observed in pains that our elites have tactically jettisoned this vision and abandoned theirpeople by settling for the crumbs that will fall on the ground after elections instead of mobilizing the people to go for real substance.”