Former Director-General of the State Security Service (SSS), Lawal Daura, has rejected the process used by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to produce candidates in Katsina State, becoming the second governorship aspirant to publicly challenge the exercise.
Mr Daura’s intervention comes days after another governorship aspirant, Mustapha Inuwa, alleged that no valid primary election was conducted in the state and called for fresh primaries.
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Addressing supporters in Katsina on Sunday, Mr Daura dismissed reports that the party had settled on a governorship candidate through a consensus arrangement and insisted that he remains in the race.
He also rejected suggestions that he had agreed to contest for the Daura Senatorial District seat instead of pursuing the governorship.
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“I entered the race for the governorship from the outset, and I have not changed that position. I remain fully committed to my aspiration,” he said.
Questions over candidate emergence process
Mr Daura argued that the process leading to the emergence of candidates had not complied with the provisions of the Electoral Act and the party’s internal guidelines.
According to him, aspirants had consistently maintained that the party should either adopt a consensus arrangement acceptable to all stakeholders or conduct primary elections in line with the law.
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“We have consistently maintained that the process must follow the provisions of the law, either through a properly conducted consensus arrangement or through direct primary elections. We are still waiting for that process to be concluded in a transparent manner,” he said.
The former intelligence chief expressed dissatisfaction with the manner in which consultations among governorship aspirants were conducted, alleging that participants were not adequately informed about how the reported consensus was reached.
“There have been claims that a consensus was achieved, but none of the five aspirants has been clearly informed of the process that produced such an outcome,” he said.
Mr Daura added that meetings involving senior party leaders failed to provide stakeholders with sufficient details regarding the outcome of reconciliation efforts.
“As a community leader and elder, I cannot endorse any process that lacks fairness and transparency. Due process must be followed,” he said.
Legal action remains an option
Mr Daura warned that he could seek legal redress if the party fails to comply with the law in determining its governorship candidate.
“If the law is not complied with, one of the things to do is to go to court and make sure that it is enforced,” he said.
He also hinted at possible political realignments if ongoing efforts to resolve the dispute fail to produce what he described as a fair and acceptable outcome.
“Another option is probably to have some realignment and review our position and the way we move forward,” he said.
Despite the controversy, Mr Daura said he remains committed to his governorship ambition, arguing that Katsina requires capable leadership to address worsening security and economic challenges.
“Katsina State is in dire need of rescue, security-wise, economy-wise and in every respect. We are indigenes of Katsina and we have what it takes to salvage and rescue our people,” he said.
The former SSS boss also described himself as qualified for the office.
“I am qualified, even overqualified, for the position. My decision to seek the governorship is because of my love for Katsina State and my desire to rescue my people,” he said.
Similar concerns raised by Inuwa
Mr Daura’s comments come amid growing discontent among some governorship aspirants over the process used to determine candidates in the state.
Last week, Mr Inuwa, a former Secretary to the Katsina State Government, rejected the candidate selection process and alleged that no valid primary election was conducted in Katsina.
He argued that aspirants had initially been told candidates would emerge through consensus or primary elections, but later complained that a small committee was used to assess and rank aspirants.
Mr Inuwa subsequently called for fresh primaries and urged the party leadership to revisit the process.
ADC defends process
Responding to complaints arising from the party’s nationwide primaries, ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, acknowledged that the exercise was not perfect but defended its overall credibility.
READ ALSO: ADC official sues Federal High Court’s chief judge, NJC over reassignment of leadership dispute
“We are the first to admit that what we did was not perfect. There was no way it would have been perfect,” Mr Abdullahi told PREMIUM TIMES.
According to him, the party was conducting what amounted to a nationwide election for the first time and some operational shortcomings were inevitable.
He, however, maintained that any mistakes recorded during the exercise were insufficient to invalidate the entire process.
“Whatever mistakes have happened are not sufficient enough to invalidate the credibility of the entire process,” he said.
On the situation in Katsina, Mr Abdullahi said no official result had yet been announced because appeals arising from the exercise were still being considered.
“No result of the primary has been officially announced as I speak with you because there are still a lot of these issues on appeal,” he said.
He added that the party would not hesitate to act where proven cases of wrongdoing or manipulation are established.
“Where there are clear wrongdoing or clear manipulation, the party will not hesitate to invalidate the outcome of the election,” he said.
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