From Paul Orude Bauchi

 

All Progressives Congress (APC) faithful in Bauchi State have unanimously appealed to the gubernatorial candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNNP) for Bauchi State, Senator Haliru  Dauda Jika, to rejoin the party.

Jika dumped the APC after the party’s controversial primaries to join NNPP on whose platform he contested as governor in the 2023 governorship and state assembly elections.

 He was defeated by the incumbent governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, after coming third behind the APC candidate, Air Marshal Saddique Abubakar.

Addressing a press conference yesterday at the NUJ Secretariat, Bauchi, the leader of the group, Comrade Ana’s Abdullahi Mato, said they unanimously resolved that Senator Jika should return to APC in the best interest of the party.

Mato explained that the decision was reached by the group after a careful observation of happenings in the party and wide consultation with some relevant and critical stakeholders of the APC.

He said: “Our decision to take these bold and important decisions at this critical moment followed careful consideration and reflection of what transpired in the recent weeks. We consider this decision the right move for our grant party, the APC.

“We are committed to ensuring that, people with proven integrity and political relevance and importance are in our party, and so Senator Jika’s return is for the overall interests of the party

“We are optimistic that his decision to decamp to another party after the questionable party primaries, is not unconnected with his interest to bring good governance and critical development projects, we are hoping this dream will achieve when he returns to the party.

Jika was elected into the House of Representatives in 2015 to represent  Darazo Ganjuwa Federal Constituency at the National Assembly, Abuja, on the platform of the APC.

He was elected as Senator, Bauchi Central Senatorial District in 2019 on the same APC platform and decorated as the pillar of APC since 2015.

“Considering the above and the need to give hope to our teeming party faithful, we hope Senator Halliru Dauda Jika will listen to our collective call and rejoin the All Progressives Congress for the overall interests of the party and the country at large,” he added.