KATSINA APC PRIMARIES IN CONFUSION 

…The case study of Mani and Bindawa Local Government 

By Abduŕrazaq Abdullahi

Ahmed Saleh Junior is not an unknown figure in Katsina State, particularly in his home areas of Mani and Bindawa Local Government Areas.

He is widely recognized as one of the individuals who consistently supports his community and local organizations in Mani.

For over a decade, he has been actively involved in the political affairs of the area, offering guidance, advice, and financial support from his personal resources. In the 2023 elections, members of his community urged him to contest for the House of Representatives seat to represent Mani and Bindawa federal constituency. He participated in the party primaries and was leading, but fate had it that the party ticket was eventually given to a candidate from Bindawa, who went on to win the general election.

Despite not securing the seat, Ahmed Saleh Junior continued to support his people without hesitation, as well as contributing to the progress of the APC and its members, part of his support for the party was purchase of nomination forms, One Million Naira each for the 22 ward councilors of Mani and Bindawa local governments respectively, he also purchased a 10 million Naira nomination forms for the two local government chairmen when no one came to their Aid as the sales of the nomination forms was closing for their 2024 local government primaries. Ahmed Saleh Junior went further to donate ten million Naira each to the two local government chairmen and their councilors for their campaign.

As preparations began for the 2027 elections, the APC adopted a zoning arrangement returning the seat to Mani Local Government Area. Community members and various groups once again called on Ahmed Saleh Junior to contest.

From Mani, four aspirants emerged: Ahmed Saleh Junior , Aminu Ashiru Mani, Jamila Abdu Maigoyo, and Lawal Tukur.

At a stakeholders’ meeting of the party, the Governor of Katsina State, Malam Dikko Umar Radda, emphasized two key points: first, there would be no imposition or favoritism—only fairness and the will of the people would prevail; second, the APC would select its candidate through consensus and mutual agreement.

In the Mani Local Government, 32 party stakeholders met and agreed to conduct an internal vote among the aspirants. All of them unanimously endorsed Ahmed Saleh Junior as the flag bearer of the party (APC) and was duly DECLARED winner by the consensus committee and the state government, his name was published on the APC official gazette and the state list of successful candidates for the Federal House of Representatives in the fourth coming 2027 general elections.

However, after the outcome was announced, the other aspirants raised complaints to the governor, alleging irregularities in the process. In response, the governor directed that the process be repeated, this time including stakeholders from Bindawa.

The Mani stakeholders reconvened and invited their Bindawa counterparts, but they did not attend. Instead, the Chairman of Bindawa Local Government submitted a written result on behalf of 18 stakeholders from Bindawa, showing that their votes were split among the aspirants.

Following this, the Mani stakeholders conducted another vote. Out of 25 stakeholders present, all unanimously endorsed Ahmed Saleh Junior.

The results were documented and submitted to the zonal reconciliation committee in Daura zone, and also forwarded to the Governor of Katsina State. Copies of the report are in the possession of the Daura reconciliation committee, as well as stakeholders from Mani and Bindawa.

Unexpectedly, an announcement was later made declaring Jamila Abdu Maigoyo who got ZERO votes as the selected candidate. This development caused significant tension in both Mani and Bindawa, with some clerics outrightly rejecting woman as a candidate in their sermons, while calling on the state government and the party to reverse this decision and return the ticket to the legitimate consensus winner of the primaries or face continuous condemnation as massive defection looms from the APC in the state as a result of these irregularities. Members of the committee were compelled to publicly clarify the situation and explain what transpired.

At present, the situation remains tense and unresolved.

Abdullahi is a Chieftain of the APC and writes from Kastina