A governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Idris Mamman-Durkwa has accused the Borno State government of frustrating his campaign ahead of the party’s primaries by making all the delegates inaccessible to him and other contestants in the race for the party’s number-one ticket.

Mr Mamman-Durkwa, a brother of the current deputy governor of Borno State, Usman-Mamman-Durkwa, said his campaign team was denied any form of contact with the delegates.

According to a statement issued by his campaign team, the “delegates have been warehoused and restricted from meeting with aspirants so as to enable a level playing ground.”

The statement signed by Mala Othman, the chairman of the campaign organisation, said “there is also a deliberate misinformation of our candidate to the good people of our party and the general public on his political aspiration.

“Complaints of threats, intimidations, and harassments from delegates who are supporters of our campaign group especially from local government areas of Abadam, Ngala, Biu, Askira/Uba, Magumeri, Kukawa, Nganzai, Shani, Mobbar, Gwoza, Bama and Mafa have also been received and fully documented.

“It is also on record that state chapter of our great party have been unduly emasculated by the Borno State Government, where decisions of the party is hijacked by the Government House instead of the party secretariat. For instance, where some selected aspirants supported by the state government were invited to Government House and party decisions made to the exclusion of some other aspirants.”

“Our campaign organisation secretariat has been infiltrated by mercenaries of highly placed government officials with the aim of causing security threats to the aspirant and his campaign organising team as well as subverting the success of the campaign.

“We have it on record that some newly appointed local government caretaker chairmen, on the assumed directives of the State Government, have suspended some party officials in their local government areas. This has happened in local government areas like Kwaya Kusar local government and others.”

Efforts to get the APC publicity secretary, Makinta Zarami to confirm or dispute this allegation were not successful as his number could not be reached at the time of filing this report.

Meanwhile, the Borno State APC has stated that it would be going for an indirect primaries come Sunday, September 30.



On Thursday, about 14 of the 21 aspirants of the party granted a press conference at the government house shortly after having a meeting with the governor where they reiterated their commitment to go for indirect governorship primaries.

Mr Durkwa was not one of the aspirants led by the current Nigerian ambassador to China, Baba-Ahmed Jidda who attended the government house meeting and the press briefing.

Other top contenders for the ticket, like the minister of state for power, works, and housing, Mustapha Baba-Shehuri; Kashim Imam, who insist on direct primaries were also absent at the meeting. Premium times

The same thing that happened in Imo state is happening in Borno state. Delegates were promised cars, money and all sort to vote the governors candidate. Shetima is wounded lion trying everything possible to cover his trail.

Caged and returned to the Zoo where they all belong.