Mokwa, one of the major towns in Niger state and a major link between the northern and southwestern parts of the country, was yesterday brought to a standstill as hundreds of youths demonstrated against the outcome of one of the recently held primary elections of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the area.

Because of the fierce demonstration, shops and offices were closed as early as 10am when the demonstration started.

The demonstrators also blocked the highway.

Motorists had to spend no less than five hours in the town before they were allowed passage by the angry youths.

The town’s traditional rulers had to intervene.

In a phone chat, one of the leaders, Shiru Kpakiko, lamented that the demonstration was “to demand from Niger state APC to give to the people of Mokwa local government their mandate.” The youth leader said the returning officer of the recently held APC state assembly primary election in Mokwa council ran away from the collation centre with ballot papers when he found out that one of the aspirants, Abdullahi Adamu, was coasting to victory.

“When the returning officer discovered that Abdullahi Adamu was winning, he ran away with the electoral materials, because there was a candidate he was supporting,” Kpakiko lamented.

“Our peaceful demonstration was to make sure that those in charge give victory to the person we massively voted for.

No one should declare who we don’t want as winner, he added.

The imbroglio that greeted APC senatorial primary elections in the state is yet to be resolved as at yesterday, even as Governor Abubakar Sani Bello called for calm and assured of a win-win resolution on Monday.

The three incumbent senators in the state lost at the poll.

But APC’s National Working Committee (NWC) released a statement two days after stating that they were given automatic tickets.

Supporters of the winners besieged APC national headquarters yesterday hoisting all sorts of placards and calling for the nullification of the automatic tickets.

A security expert from the state last night said: “The governor should not allow the automatic ticket, if he wants peace in the state and also want the success of his party in the general election”.

He said: “Investigations have shown that people are ready to take laws into their hands if the NWC’s decision is eventually adopted.

No government wants the breakdown of law and order.

Besides, we are talking about what the people want.

Democracy is what the people want.

Based on the respective performance of the three senators at NASS, their people do no longer want their representations.

Governor Bello should not allow NWC to put his state in chaos.”

https://www.blueprint.ng/apc-primaries-crisis-rocks-niger/

Political crises all over the place

APC, always synonymous with Crisis.

Pics

Oshiomole!

They can't conduct successful primaries talk less of election. APC must go!

They have just shown how confused they are. Well 2019 is around the corner