Gombe 2027: Pantami Calls For Unity After Reclaiming PDP Ticket

Professor Isa Ali Pantami has called on his opponents in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary in Gombe State to unite behind the party after he was declared winner of the rerun primaries held on Tuesday.

Pantami made the call shortly after the results were announced at the PDP secretariat in Gombe.

He specifically appealed to his two challengers, Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki and Usman Aliyu Garry, to work with him for the success of the party and its candidates in the 2027 general elections.

The former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy also commended PDP members for what he described as their peaceful conduct during the exercise, which was conducted across the state’s 114 wards and 11 local government areas.

LEADERSHIP reports that the Chairman of the PDP Governorship Primary Election Committee, Tiemlong Shekarau, declared Pantami the winner with 2,555 votes, while Mailantarki polled 389 votes and Garry secured 112 votes.

The declaration returned Pantami as the PDP’s governorship candidate after a Federal High Court in Gombe had nullified the party’s earlier primary and ordered a fresh exercise.

In his acceptance remarks, Pantami sought to shift attention from the bitter contest and subsequent legal battles to the task of rebuilding the party ahead of the 2027 elections.

He urged Mailantarki and Garry to join him in working towards the success of PDP candidates.

Pantami also outlined his political ambition beyond securing the party’s ticket, saying that if elected governor, he would provide what he described as “purposeful leadership and rescue the state from years of mis-governance” under the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.

However, shortly after Pantami was declared winner, Mailantarki rejected the result and declared himself the rightful winner, arguing that Pantami was not eligible to participate in the contest.

Mailantarki said he was prepared to challenge the outcome in court, including at the Supreme Court, if necessary. He based his position on his interpretation of previous judicial decisions concerning Pantami’s eligibility to contest the PDP primary.

Garry also rejected the exercise, describing it as invalid because of Pantami’s participation. He had earlier challenged the original primary process, which led to the September 24 Federal High Court judgment ordering the PDP to conduct a fresh governorship primary.