Saturday Interview
By
Managing Editor
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Hafiz Muhammad Nahuche is one of the PDP gubernatorial aspirants in Zamfara who contested for the post of Governor at the May 25th 2022 but lost to Dr. Dauda Lawal. He was also among those that approached the Federal High Court Gusau to seek for nullification of the primary election on the ground of irregularities discovered. In this interview with the Managing Editor Ana’s Sani Anka, he shared his views on the primary election conducted on Friday the 23rd of September 2022 and why believed what transpired could not stand the position of the law.
—————————————————————What happened with you and your supporters since the Federal High Court Gusau announced the cancelation of the PDP Primaries?
Honestly, since when we have our governorship primary election nullified by the Federal High Court Gusau we were left in the dark by the party. I was not for once contacted by the party leadership neither was I involved in the arrangement leading to the conduct of another primary election.
I don’t know what I have done to the party leadership and i told my supporters that lets wait and watch things as they unfold. I am a member of the party I put my millions of naira to secure nomination form and also passes through all the laid down procedures of the party so I know for sure i have to be carried a long in decision making regarding how to conduct fresh primaries and if anybody feels I am not important then lets watch and see.
So how do you feel when you was told that a fresh election has been rescheduled against Friday the 23rd of September 2022?
At first instance i could not believe it was true but when the notice given to the INEC went viral on the social media i had to call the Chairman of the party in the state and intimate him if it is true that the notice was from the PDP headquarters and he confirmed it.
But i challenged him if he feels it is right for the party to scheduled another fresh primary election without consulting us as aspirants.
The response of the party Chairman is actually demonstrating that, something fishy may likely going to happened but I told my supporters to tarry for a while and wait to see the steps to be taken by the party leadership.
Notwithstanding the notice of the court processes served to the party and INEC, we wonder how the fresh primary election can be conducted but to our surprise they proceeded without recourse to following statutory procedures and without respect to the court processes served.
What is your assessment of the fresh exercise conducted on Friday?
For me what happened on Friday was not an exercise rather a child play. The leadership on its own part knew that since there is a court processes served, it is supposed to stay action but it rushed the whole exercise. Secondly the mistakes we wanted to avoid since the election was nullified shall be identified collectively with all the stakeholders and get them remedied but that was not done.
They went and planned their political arithmetics and went on without involving any one of us just because they have one of us at the back of their mind and they want him to win the election at all cost.
We are not bothered because we knew very well what they have done on Friday cannot stand the position of the law so we followed them to the logical conclusion.
Tell us what exactly have they done which is against the law?
My agent for instance was barricaded from entering the premises of the party primaries and while he was to stand by me as representative he was stopped by armed political thugs at the entry of the venue until when I have to come personally. Even when I came to the venue myself, i was also denied entry by the same group of thugs not until when i went to secure police reinforcement before i was aided into the venue.
on reaching the venue, the election was ongoing and i have to call the attention of the Chairman on the existing court processes served on the party as well as the refusal of the party to involved the right stakeholders and again the response of the Chairman does not sound as if they have realized the danger ahead.
So they were all blindfolded because they want to make sure that they have delivered someone to victory even if it is against the law and because of that I asked my agent to stay on my behalf and observed clearly what may like going to transpired.
To my surprise even the tag to be used by my agent was not handed over to him until few minutes to the completion of the exercise and we became helpless having no option than to allow them do what they want to do.
So tell us what happened after?
What happened wasn’t a different story because after the election I have to secure armed policemen to get my agent out of that venue because the place was heavily militarized and at a point no one can feel safe moving freely out of that place. To be candid with you I was surprise with the action of the party leadership toward us it is purely undemocratic. We were treated as if we are not members of the party.
So i came back with my team and begin to develop another template of way forward because this is a political process we had started and we have to get to its logical end by whatever means legitimate.
But why don’t you work the option of reconciling with this anointed candidate of the party Dr. Dauda Lawal?
You see there is no political process that cannot take the path of reconciliation but that is if the person demanding for the reconciliation has taken the path of humanity also. Dr. Dauda met us in the party we were there before him but if for any reason he need to have an upper hand above all of us there are procedures and steps if at all we have the interest of Zamfara at the heart.
But because he believed he can secure an alternative ways that is out of humanity he developed these political tricks and you can see where it is taking the PDP to. We are patriotic members of the PDP and citizens of Zamfara by extension and we have to stand firm to fight injustice because that is twhat is taking Zamfara back.
But I am telling you this and let it be on record we are not going to succumb to their political threat and we shall stand firm to challenge what they are planning to do. I cannot for sure be a party to the breach of court processes and I cannot be a party to violation of the provision of the Electoral Act. I am sure even this time around the court will surely speak the right language for them.
But dont you see Dauda Lawal dumping the APC for PDP is doing a great service to the chances of your party in winning the 2023 election?
Let me ask you since you brought this issue. For sometimes now we had been raising this suspecion that Dauda may not be in the PDP truely for the progress of the party. His attitudes and action has proben the suspecion.
Can you imagine a gubernatorial candidate placing a campaign posters without party logo? this is really a suspecious move because if he is truely a member of the PDP and he believed in the party he cannot print a poster without the party logo. Secondly, since May 25th when he left Zamfara after he was declared winner of the primaries what has he done to show that he mean well for the PDP.
We are suspecting that he is in the PDP for a mission and we shall continue to challenge his impunity till when we understand his genuine mission. We cannot surrender the party (PDP) to someone who is suspected to be having an arrangement with the ruling APC so take very good notice of this.
But what is your impression of Dauda if he succeeded finally?
You see the development is actually sending us a wrong signal that leaders are entrusted with the mandate to lead shall have moral standing grounds to take the path of honesty. I will tell you categorically tell you that, there is no way one shall trust someone who rigged primary election to be able to do the right thing when he finally succomb the leadership.
If he emerged victorious he will surrender the supremacy of the state because he does not have the good mission to be able to save the people from the social and economic crises facing the state. I believe Zamfara people need to be careful because his political despratesm is really saying bad about him
So what next for you since they have declared him winner of the election again?.
I have told you the matter is in court and we shall wait to see the end of the whole drama but write it down they shall fail because they did not follow the path of justice and fairness. There interest is to enforce on to us political impunity and take advantage of the weakness of some mindsets within the party to cause further confusion within the party. That shall not be allowed by us god willing.
