From John Adams Minna

The Niger state chapters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are entangled in a war of words over the recent composition of the State Independent Electoral Commission (NSIEC) by the state governor, Umaru Mohammed Bago.

The governor had announced a seven-member electoral body in preparation for the local government election in the state, with the former chairman of the APC in the state, Jibrin Imam, as its chairman.

It also has the former state secretary of the party, Mohammed Liman, as a permanent commissioner, with five others who are all APC card-carrying members.

This development drew sharp reactions from the PDP in the state, which strongly questioned the neutrality in the appointment of the members.

PDP in a statement by its Zone C Chairman, Yahaya Ability, challenged lack of fairness, equity and justice in the composition of the NSIEC, describing it as undemocratic and insensitive.

The statement titled, “Where is your excellency in appointing former APC chairman and a card carrying members of the APC as the state INEC chairman,” questioned the lack of transparency in the whole exercise, saying that the body would be compromised in the conduct of the local government elections.

But APC, while defending the action, said the Governor obeyed the law in his reconstitution of the NSIEC.

The APC in a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Musa Sarkinkaji (S.K) said all the nominees had since resigned their membership of the ruling party making them eligible to serve in the Commission.

According to him, “There is no aspect of the law that stops a person that had resigned his membership of the party he belonged to from being nominated into the Commission.”

While making reference to previous appointments in the NSIEC, the APC spokesman said card carrying members of the PDP were nominated into the Commission by late former Governor Abdulkhadir kure as well as former Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu and the immediate past governor now Senator  Abubakar Sani Bello during their tenure.

He argued further that, “What is important is to get people of impeccable character to serve in this important commission and that is what Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago has done.”

Sarkinkaji, therefore, urged the PDP to have confidence in the ability of the nominees to discharge their responsibilities without bias to any political party but the growth and development of democracy in the state.

The APC spokesman said he would not speak for the new chairman of the Commission who was said to have been accused by the same APC under former Governor Bello’s administration of corruption, saying, “We advise Jibrin Imam to seek redress in court for damage done to his reputation by the PDP.

“As we await the screening and clearance of these eminent Nigerians, we have absolute confidence that they will perform creditably in the assignment the people of the state have given them. All we need is everyone, including Yahaya Abilitys’ prayers for them to succeed in conducting a peaceful local government election.”