Last Saturday’s Federal House of Representatives by-elections held in Katsina, Kwara and Bauchi States have been described as an indicator to the popular acceptance of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the rejection of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) by Nigerians.
Making the analogy in a statement issued and circulated in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital on Thursday, a chieftain of the APC in the State, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, also pointed out that the outcome of the by-elections was a parable to the duo of the Senate President, Mr Bukola Saraki, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara, that their political reign had come to an end.
Mr Eze, who is also a former ally of the duo National Assembly leaders, noted that the by-elections, held on the eve of the upcoming general elections, was a divine instruction, intended to emphasize that the APC had come to change Nigeria for good, also to stamp the fact that those who used to determine the destinies of millions of Nigerians negatively will no longer have access to public offices as the people are now free to reject them without consequences.
It would be recalled that the by-elections were held on Saturday, November 17, 2018, in Katsina, Kwara and Bauchi; the home states of President Muhammadu Buhari, Senator Bukola Saraki and Hon Yakubu Dogara respectively and the polls were all cleared by the APC. It would also be recalled that Senator Saraki and Hon Dogara had defected from the APC to the PDP earlier in the year.
“Most importantly the APC success in these states signifies the general acceptance of President Muhammadu Buhari as the true leader of our present generation and eclipse of the political careers of some political heavyweights like the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki and Speaker, House of Representatives, Barr Yakubu Dogara who recently decamped from the ruling APC to PDP whose notoriety and looting of our common patrimony with impunity led to most of the economic challenges currently facing Nigeria.
“The All Progressives Congress (APC) convincingly won the by-election into the Kankiya/Kusada/Ingawa federal constituency seat of Katsina State; Toro Federal Constituency of Bauchi State and that of /lrepodun/Isin/Oke-Ero federal constituency of Kwara State while in Katsina, the APC candidate Abubakar Kusada polled 48,518 votes beating his closest rival, the PDP candidate, Abdussamad Abdullah, who polled 20, 193 votes. APC also through Alhaji Yusuf Nuhu, won the by-election in Toro Federal Constituency of Bauchi having scored a total vote of 22,317 to lead his close rival of the PDP candidate, Alhaji Shehu Buba who polled 18,235 votes to come second. In Kwara the APC’s candidate Olawuyi scored 21,236 votes to beat the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Saheed Alatise who polled 18,095 votes.
“This demonstrates, not minding all the PDP propaganda, that the electorate was still enthusiastic about APC and the President Buhar’s administration. What the people of Bauchi and Kwara have done to both Barr Dogara and Dr Saraki respectively is that they are going to be politically buried come February 2019 and I am sure that both Saraki and Dogara would be politically retired by the good people of Kwara and Bauchi for having poorly represented their people and frustrated most of the good programs of the APC administration”, he said.
He, however, congratulated the people of Katsina, Bauchi and Kwara states for once again demonstrating that there are truly patriotic Nigerians, saying “kudos to the Minster of Information and the current political leader of Kwara State, Lai Mohammed and the entire Kwara people for freeing themselves from Saraki who have enslaved them all these years, mis-mismanaged their economic and political rights over the years.
“I urge Nigerians to continue to support and keep faith with the administration of President Buhari as he is on a divine mission to make Nigeria the great nation that God has destined her to be,” the APC chieftain said.
Adedapo Adesanya