• Governor orders respect for his deputy
Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano
The Deputy Governor of Kano State, Professor Hafiz Abubakar, has disclosed that he is not interested in seeking re-election along with the state Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, in 2019.
Hafiz, in a leaked audio obtained by THISDAY in Kano yesterday, said he was sidelined by a Ganduje-led group in the formation of party structure and leadership at his ward and local government levels.
According to him, “When they were campaigning for election, my picture was juxtaposed with the governor, president and our leader, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.
“But today at my birthplace, my picture was replaced with somebody else’s picture. What have I done to my birthplace? I do not deserve this even as a university lecturer at Bayero University, where I hope to return in 2019 at the expiration of my tenure.
“Pray for me to return to the university by May 2019. This is the prayer I am doing. Those who want to continue should go on, but my prayer is to go back to Bayero University.
“I will not be part of a system whereby the leadership of my party, (APC), All Progressive Congress would be formed at my Mandawari ward, my birthplace, and my brother removed without consulting me.
“I will never continue in this situation. I did not bring myself here. I was engrossed in my academic activities when I was picked as the deputy governorship candidate.
“The God that chose me is not sleeping. Whether I am in the university, God knows the best. I pray to him to choose the best for me,†he added.
However, in his reaction, the state Governor, Ganduje, said he was shocked by the statement made by Hafiz.
To this end, the governor directed the immediate reinstatement of the removed chairman, while calling on politicians to always contact party leadership and politicians holding higher offices before embarking on issues of sensitive nature.
A statement signed by the Commissioner for Information, Youth and Culture, Malam Muhammad Garba, and made available to THISDAY indicated that Ganduje also tasked politicians and other members of the public to accord the same respect to the deputy governor in their dealings with him.
He reiterated the commitment of the APC to work towards ensuring justice and fairness in the selection of credible candidates and conduct of primary elections in areas where consensus candidate for councillor and chairmanship positions for local government could not be produced.
Ganduje also called on members of the APC to desist from any act capable of causing disunity in the party ranks.
