THE 12 ward chairmen of All Progressives Congress, APC, in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State on Monday, April 2, alongside councillorship candidates each accompanied by supporters converged on Afaka Ward in continuation of protests of alleged imposition of candidates ahead of the state’s LGA polls.

Four Operation Yaki trucks with armed security personnel promptly deployed to the area were sighted strategically positioned along the highway, a sight that made the protesters disperse and regroup at the Afaka/Mano Police Outpost, where they were seen holding a meeting with the officer in charge.

Earlier at the gathering, Afaka Ward APC Women Leader, Hajia Talatu said that they are angry in Afaka that they converged since 7am for the primaries, only to be told that the ballot boxes were snatched.

“Here in Afaka we did not vote in the primaries. In the entire Igabi LGA, there was no primaries. We gathered here on the date designated for primaries, women, youth and men alike, we were waiting, a woman even delivered a baby here but there was no election. We are angry now to hear that some were announced winners,” she said.

Tasiu Musa, an APC stakeholder in Igabi LGA, said they gathered to make their position clear. “There was nothing like APC councillorship primary election in Igabi LGA because some useless people snatched the ballot boxes,” he said.

He appealed to Governor Nasir el-Rufai and other top opinion leaders in the party to intervene and ensure fairness and equity in the party through the conduct of primaries in the entire Igabi LGA.

It was reliably gathered that a mega protest by all the ward chairmen, candidates and their supporters will be held sometime this week, if the party does not take the action anticipated by the aggrieved parties.

“Already, I have gone to the Police Command to do all the necessary paper works to ensure we gather a massive crowd to drive home our grievances concerning the primaries,” the source added.

It would be recalled that the 12 Igabi APC Ward Chairmen, led by the Chairman of the party in the LGA had protested to the state Secretariat of their party on Thursday over non conduct of primaries for emergence of party’s councillorship representatives at the forthcoming Kaduna Local Council Polls.

They alleged that lawmakers from the LGA at the state and National Assembly had hijacked materials meant for the primaries from the state secretariat to an undisclosed location, preventing the primaries from taking place at the designated venues.

– Apr. 3, 2018 @ 13:24 GMT

AE