2023: Plateau PDP guber aspirants tackle chairman over plans to impose candidate

By Christiana Ekpa

Palpable tension is building among the gubernatorial aspirants and stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Plateau state over alleged plans by the state chairman, Chris Hassan, to favour his friend with the governorship ticket in the next month’s primary election.

Allegations to impose his ally, one Alfred Dapal, out of the 15 aspirants from the same LGA filtered at the weekend with himself (Hassan) being groomed to become the running mate from Bassa LGA.

Such a plan is to reenact what happened in 2019 by the former State Chairman of the party in the state, Danishi Sango which favoured Senator Jeremiah Useni.

The information is breeding serious acrimony as stakeholders are set for a showdown to ensure a level playing field for all contenders.

Some of the gubernatorial aspirants from the state revealed this to select journalists at the National Secretariat in Abuja during the submission of their forms at the weekend.

According to one of the aspirants, “The chairman has not learnt from the past. I think they are more interested in filling their pockets with money than the party regaining its lost glory. We hear that he is working assiduously to bring on board his friend, a staff of AGIP in Abuja, who is said to have spent millions of naira to make him state Chairman of the party.

“To this end, he has begun a subtle conscription of some State Working Committee members to work on the LGA chairmen through the zonal chairmen to ensure they endorse his friend as the candidate for the governorship position, who will in turn pick him as deputy governor.

“He is lobbying the individual executive committee members to influence them to support his aspirant.

“It is very clear that Hassan has not learnt from what happened in 2019. Even though he was part of the plans that brought in Useni as candidate, he feigned ignorance when Sango was accused and removed of sundry allegations.

“He is said to have been collecting money from the said aspirant who is a complete novice in politics, to facilitate the process for him. But we shall resist it. As a party Chairman, he should be more interested in winning elections for his party rather than impose his friend. Such an attempt will collapse I assure you”.

Another aspirants who spoke on conditions of anonymity said, “For now,  we are watching, but the information is everywhere.The state chairman is alleged to have collected huge sums from a Langtang born politically ambitious serving customs officer in Abuja who is a godfather to his aspirant friend and who has boasted of a huge financial muscle to work the way for his godson to emerge as the flagbearer of the party. Where was he when we were fighting to make Hassan and his team exco?”

“The serving customs officer is quoted to have said that even though Senator Jonah Jang is the leader of the party in the state, ‘”But  by the Grace of God, I am the kingmaker because I have spent so much to bring Chris Hassan on board twice as chairman.

“I know how much I have spent and the promise was for them to support my candidate. Even the leader of the party in the state has not contributed as much. I cannot be spending money to keep the party and not benefit from it”, boasted the customs man.