By Musa Baba Adamu
A group of All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters in Zamfara State has urged the party’s National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, to reject any move by Governor Dauda Lawal to join the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Group, under the banner of Zamfara APC Supporters (ZAS), issued a strongly worded statement on Wednesday, accusing the governor of plotting to defect as a strategy to escape corruption investigations.
Comrade Muttaka Ibrahim Ruwan Bore, who leads the group, claimed the governor is attempting to use the APC as a shield due to fears of prosecution over alleged connections with former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke and ex-Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele.
He described the defection move as an effort to seek a “soft landing” by aligning with the ruling party.
“Dauda always boasts that the people voted for him. We are saying he should remain in the Peoples Democratic Party and test his popularity to see if he can secure even 20 percent of the votes.
We are not asking him to join us, but it would be better for him to test his popularity come 2027.”
“Governor Dauda wants to reap where he did not sow,” Bore added. “We, the APC members in Zamfara, are satisfied with our current leaders and do not welcome an additional burden.”
The group also highlighted prominent APC figures in the state—such as former governors Ahmad Sani Yarima, Mamuda Shinkafi, Abdul’aziz Yari, and Bello Matawalle—as leaders who have consistently upheld the party’s grassroots strength.
Bore further alleged that Governor Dauda’s defection bid is a calculated political move in case he loses re-election in 2027. He emphasized the party’s stance against corruption:
“Our party is corruption-intolerant,” he said. “We cannot accept anyone with baggage from past misdeeds.”
Governor Dauda, a former banker who won the 2023 governorship election under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has continued to face scrutiny over alleged ties to controversial figures.
Despite losing the last governorship election, the APC remains a powerful force in Zamfara, largely due to the enduring influence of its past governors.
As the political landscape begins to shift ahead of the 2027 elections, the ZAS group urged APC members to be vigilant.
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