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From Noah Ebije, Kaduna
The campaign council of former Speaker of Kaduna State of House of Assembly and Kaduna Central senatorial aspirant, Yusuf Ibrahim Zailani, has rejected the outcome of the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election for Kaduna Central, declaring that “no primary election held” across the zone.
Addressing journalists after the controversial exercise on May 18, the council accused party officials of conducting an alleged flawed and non-transparent process that failed to meet APC’s standards.
Speaking on behalf of the campaign council, Deputy Director General of the Campaign, Cafra Caino said party members waited for hours at designated venues across the seven local government areas without seeing election materials or officials.
“Party faithful were at various ward and party offices for the exercise and after several hours of waiting in vain, there were no election materials in sight,” he said.
The council maintained that the “acclaimed primary election fell short of the standards stipulated by the APC National Working Committee,” adding that the process “was not transparent and fell short of standard.”
Caino said the purported result announced for the Kaduna Central primaries “raises serious questions about the integrity of the exercise.
“Consequently, Yusuf Ibrahim Zailani Campaign Council unequivocally rejects the purported result announced for the Kaduna Central Senatorial Zone primary election.
“We do not recognize the outcome as a true reflection of the will of APC members in the zone.”
The campaign also called on the APC National Working Committee and the Kaduna State Electoral Committee to investigate the conduct of the exercise and order a fresh process.
“We demand a redress in the outcome of the primary election in line with party guidelines and democratic principles,” he said.
Despite its grievances, the campaign urged supporters to remain peaceful and law-abiding, while seeking redress through party mechanisms.
“We urge all supporters of Zailani and APC members in Kaduna Central to remain calm and law-abiding.
“The campaign council remains committed to internal democracy and will not stand by while the will of the people is subverted,” he said.
The council, however, thanked supporters for what it described as an “overwhelming turnout” and “remarkable show of solidarity” across Birnin Gwari, Giwa, Igabi, Kaduna North, Kaduna South, Chikun and Kajuru local government areas.
According to the campaign council, the support shown during the aborted exercise “reaffirmed the strength of this movement and the deep connection we share with the people.”
The APC is yet to officially respond to the allegations raised by the Zailani Campaign Council as at the time of filing this report.
