The deputy governorship candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in Benue State during the 2023 general elections, Dr Comfort Ogbaji, has hailed the Friday, January 12, 2024 verdict of the Supreme Court which affirmed Abba Kabir Yusuf as the duly elected governor of Kano State.
The five-man panel, led by Justice Inyang Okoro, thus put a final stop to a legal battle between the All Progressive Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate candidate, Nasiru Gawuna, which challenged the election of Governor Kabir Yusuf.
Dr Ogbaji, speaking exclusively with Tribune Online, on the sideline of the press briefing organised by the party after its victory in Abuja over the weekend, said the ruling of the apex court has not only restored the hope of the common man in the judiciary but has clearly shown that the NNPP is a party loved by Nigerians from across the country.
She however commended the national leader of the party, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso, for his doggedness and belief in the judiciary to do the right thing with the Kano State governorship election.
“The hope of the common man has been restored. Because we have been praying, we have tried our best. I was at the Appeal Court the day they threw judgment against us. We’re all crying but our brave leader (Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso) said it can’t stop there that he still remembers and believes that there is still one more step that the common man can go and seek for justice. And we all agreed with him because he’s our leader. He leads and we follow. He made it possible for us to go to the Supreme Court. And at the Supreme Court, Nigeria was restored.
“So, what I’m saying is that the hope of the common man has been restored. Because what the other not right-thinking Nigerians wanted to do was to turn the table against the common man or deny the common man his rights. This said, I would say kudos to my national leader and all the party faithful, members of the National Working Committee (NWC) for this ‘fight’ which has ended well for us, and glory be to God that He give us victory. Because for everything, it has to be God.
Speaking on his principal and the governorship candidate of the party, Professor Ben Angwe, who has jumped ship, Ogbaji stated that the absence of Angwe will not affect the fortunes of the party in Benue State in 2027 saying the state remains a strong force to reckon with in the Middle Belt.
“Despite the fact that my principal (Ben Angwe) has left the party, NNPP is still fully on ground in Benue. If you know as a pressman, you will understand that Benue is the heartbeat of the Middle Belt. You can’t do election in Nigeria without understanding that you need some support from the Middle Belt. Benue is NNPP and NNPP is Benue.
“The fact that my principal left is politics and politics is a thing of choice. He (Angwe) has taken a stand and that doesn’t mean that NNPP has disappeared in Benue. I’m here and will be until the next election (2027) season and we are going to have election in Benue and we have high hope. Our leader is loved and when someone that is leading you is loved by the people, it is good for you and the party. As a leader of the party in Benue State, I believe something fantastic will come the way of NNPP,” the deputy governorship candidate told Tribune Online.
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