The Jigawa State chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has withdrawn from participating in the forthcoming local government council elections scheduled for October 5, 2024.
This decision follows allegations that the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) is planning to extort over N709 million through nomination forms for chairman and councillor positions.
In a statement issued, signed, and made available to the Online Tribune in Dutse, the state chairman, Honourable Ali Idris Diginsa, stated: “The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) resolved to back out from the proposed local council election in the state following the outrageous amount of N5 million and N2 million fixed as nomination fees for chairman and councillor positions.”
The statement indicates that the PDP is not convinced that the Jigawa State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) will conduct a fair and just election. According to the statement, “The chairman and members of the commission are not only card-carrying members of the APC but also active and participatory members of the party in the state, which clearly contravenes the law establishing the commission.”
The party maintained that “the hasty decision to conduct the election was made after jittery anticipation of the scrapping of state electoral bodies. The cost of the nomination forms as announced by SIEC is not only exorbitant but extortive and senseless, aimed at disenfranchising members of the opposition, especially in view of the present excruciating economic hardship inflicted on the people by the APC.”
The Honourable Ali Idris Diginsa added: “We believe that members of the APC and some small political parties (who will be stooges of the government) will be given the forms free of charge. The estimated cost of what the PDP is supposed to pay is well over N709 million. If 10 political parties decided to buy the forms, SIEC would extort a staggering N79 billion or more. This is far beyond their approved budget, as SIEC is not a profit-making venture.”
“This act of disenfranchisement by the APC government of Jigawa State is clear evidence of their fear of the unavoidable reprisal from the people as a result of the government’s mediocrity and inept misrule in the past nine years.”
“We have appealed to the government and the SIEC to subsidise the cost of the nomination forms and make them affordable for all, regardless of party affiliations. But out of fear of an imminent embarrassing defeat, they decided to make the forms as unaffordable as they wished.”
He said that N5 million for the chairmanship position and N2 million for the councillorship position are excessively high. Diginsa indicated that the APC is jittery and afraid of going into the election because they allegedly failed the Jigawa people by throwing them into abject poverty and hunger. This, he claimed, is the reason for making it difficult for opposition parties.
He called on members of their party to exercise a high degree of patience with the decision and to remain law-abiding, noting that the time for general elections will come when the PDP will send the ruling party, the APC, packing.
He also expressed gratitude for the unprecedented solidarity shown to the party by the general public, who is increasingly craving the return of the PDP with nostalgia.
It should be recalled that the Jigawa State Independent Electoral Commission (JISIEC) had postponed the local government elections in the state, originally scheduled for June 2024, to June 2025. This decision was based on an amendment to the state’s electoral law.
This postponement followed the PDP’s alarm that the state House of Assembly was planning to amend local government electoral laws to facilitate the appointment of caretaker committees in the 27 local government areas of the state.
When contacted by phone, the Jigawa State All Progressive Congress (APC) chairman, Hon. Aminu Sani Gumel, dismissed the PDP’s allegations. He said the electoral body is independent in its actions and activities in accordance with the constitution.
Hon. Aminu Sani Gumel noted: “To my understanding, the amount was fixed to make the elections more serious and easier to conduct. I believe that anyone who pays that amount is very serious about the position and will serve the people to their satisfaction.”
The chairman of the ruling party maintained: “If the PDP will complain about N5 million and N2 million in Jigawa State, what about the PDP in Adamawa State, where it fixed N10 million and N5 million for the same positions?”
He explained that such amounts help control the number of candidates and reduce rowdy participation and crises before, during, and after the election.
Commenting on the APC’s prospects in the election, Hon. Aminu Sani Gumel said the APC has no fear of losing, adding: “It was in Jigawa that the APC began winning elections in Hadejia and Malam Madori local governments under Sule Lamido’s administration when he appointed sole administrators until he left office.”
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