Mansur Aramide, Gombe
New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) has debunked the rumour that its governorship candidate in Gombe State, Khamisu Mailantarki collected N2 billion from Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya to compromise his ambition at the last election.
The party described the rumour as a mere imagination of “Mailantarki’s enemies.”
Speaking yesterday at a meeting in Ambar hall, Gombe metropoly to access the party’s outing at the February/March general elections, the Gombe State House of Assembly Minority Leader, Ibrahim Ayala said his mentor never collected money to forgo his political bid in March.
He said: “there was nothing we didn’t see before the election; you all recall there was a fake court order that disqualified him from contesting the race; at the end it turned out to be a fake.
“Let me tell you the glaring truth that both PDP and APC are jittery of Mailantarki who shaped politics in Gombe State, he was a thorn on their flesh.
“It is on record that Mailantarki nurtured NNPP to be nightmare of PDP and APC, they went on campaign of calumny to sell their own products,” he stated.
Meanwhile, members of the party also protested alleged attempt to lord on them an “unpopular” state leadership.
According to eyewitnesses, the meeting was going on well until about two hours when the acting chairman, elder Saminu Amos tendered oral resignation for old age reason.
It was however alleged that the members rose to challenge the NNPP leadership attempt to replace him with another acting chairman.
They approached the podium to reject the move that, insisting that the development be referred to the party’s guber candidate, Khamisu Mailantarki for directive.
The development brought the meeting to sudden end as the scenario became uncontrollable.
Ayala however blamed the rowdiness on the naivety of the members, saying: “this is a pure ignorance of our people, they don’t know what the party constitution says about this situation, Mailantarki has the right to appoint acting chairman pending a more acceptable convention.”
However, the party had before the confusion endorsed Mailantarki as authentic leader in the state.
NNPP state secretary, Nasir Muhammed while allaying fears over the confusion that accompanied the meeting told the media that the party executive would consider all issues raised by the members.
