By: Muhammad Sabiu – Kaduna
As anxiety deepens following the arrest of three officials of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the former governor of Kaduna State, Senator Ahmed Makarfi has hinted over an alleged plan to arrest and detain 80 members of the party from participating in the forthcoming governorship and State House of Assembly elections.
Makarfi dropped the hint on Thursday at the heels of the arrest of three top PDP members in the State by security operatives over alleged inciting statements early in the week.
Makarfi, who is the former chairman of the PDP National Caretaker Committee in an interview in Kaduna on Thursday further alleged that PDP is in possession of the list of those pencilled down for arrest before the governorship and House of Assembly elections, rescheduled for March, 18, 2023.
He said, “our attention has been drawn to the above list of our field officers, drawn up by the Government to be arrested and detained until after the elections. This has grievous implications”.
The former governor said those pencilled down for arrest were drawn from Kudan, Sanga, Igabi, Lere,, Kachia, Jaba and Kaduna North Local Government Areas of the State which are believed to be PDP strongholds.
To this end, Makarfi warned the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) Government in the State of arbitrary arrest of members of the opposition party as a prelude to the conduct of the governorship and State House of Assembly elections which has been rescheduled to March 18, 2023 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Recall on wednesday a former Commissioner of Information in the State, Saidu Adamu and two PDP officials at Kabala Costain Ward were arrested and detained by Security operatives, after allegedly making comments on the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the APC government.
Senator Makarfi who reacted to the arrest of Adamu who is also the Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP Campaign Council in Kaduna State and the two other members of the party, said that “Honourable Adamu is still in detention and we don’t know the alleged offenses”, adding that, he (Adamu) has also not been charged to court, it is a very sad development.”
