PDP chairmanship candidate steps down for APC rival in Bwari

• Minister pledges more roads, schools if…

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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja

In a dramatic pre-election twist ahead of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Councils poll, Julius Adamu, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chairmanship candidate for Bwari Area Council, has stepped down in favour of his All Progressives Congress (APC) rival, Joshua Ishaku Musa, ahead of the February 21 elections.

The surprise move came after direct intervention by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike. Adamu described his decision as a “sacrifice for peace and progress” in Bwari, calling on supporters to rally behind Musa.

Adamu’s full remarks: “Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Julius Adamu, the immediate past honourable speaker of the Bwari Area Council and now PDP chairmanship candidate for the Bwari Area Council. I am standing here before you this afternoon to tell you that I have gone into a deep consultation with the Honourable Minister of FCT and that we’ve come to the conclusion that Joshua and I are brothers. And that it will not be nice for two brothers to kill themselves for no reason. So, as such, I have relinquished my support to Joshua. You see, we are from the same ward as Joshua. Joshua was in office in 2016, and I removed him from office in 2019. So, I wanted to remove him again, but I listened to my daddy (the minister), and I said, ‘Let me leave him.’ I want to urge you all that we should all support him to become chairman of the Bwari Area Council. I want to thank you; God bless you.”

In his remarks, Wike pledged more roads and schools for the area council if they vote for Musa.

Wike said, “Thank you. The people of Bwari, let me tell you why you should support Joshua. If you support Joshua, I will do more roads for you. If you support Joshua, I will build more schools for you. Let nobody make a mistake; on Saturday, come out and make sure that our brother Joshua wins the election.”

Wike repeated three times, “Will you vote for him?” The crowd roared back with a loud “Yes!” each time.