From Noah Ebije, Kaduna
Kaduna State chapter of Middle Belt Forum (MBF) has expressed disappointment over local government Chairmanship election held penultimate Saturday across the State, describing it as ‘Yahoo Yahoo election’
In a statement yesterday by the Chairman of MBF, Luka Binniyat, it noted that announcing results where election allegedly did not take place amounted to bad and dangerous omen for the 2027 general elections.
The MBF regretted that it might be force to lose trust in governor Uba Sani so early because of bad electoral precedent, adding that the conduct of previous LG elections in the State under the immediate past governor Nasir El-rufai was far better off.
“If in the end, the said results are made to stand, it’s a bad and dangerous omen for 2027 and we must all be prepared to resist such ballot banditry.
“This will then be the first time that Kaduna state is experiencing electoral “Yahoo Yahoo plus.” And under Gov. Uba Sani.
“No one knows the implication of such injustice on even the perpetrators in the future even as it is a huge injury to democracy and a mockery of civilisation.
“The Middle Belt Forum (MBF), Kaduna State Chapter wishes to express its profound concern and fear over a trending video which appears to feature the Chairman, Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission (KAD-SIECOM), Hajia Hajara Mohammed, announcing the results of the supposed 19th October, 2024 Local Government Chairmanship and Councilors election.
“In the said 60 seconds video, Hajara Mohammed announced that elections took place in all the 255 wards of the state and its 23 LGAs. She added that the APC won all the 23 LGAs Chairmanship positions and all the 255 Councilors’ seats.
“It’s not clear if she was addressing the Press or if it was a pre-recorded video, but the story is awash in both the conventional and the new media already.
It should be noted MBF, Kaduna State Chapter, which is made up members from the 12 LGAs of Southern Kaduna and non-Kaduna State indigenes from other parts of defunct Northern Nigeria that were never part of the Sokoto Caliphate and Kanem-Borno empire in pre-colonial Nigeria, have high stakes in this election.
“It is out of this consideration that we deem it proper to State that from all that we have gathered from the field on Saturday, elections did not hold in the overwhelming 12 LGAs of the Middle Belt in Kaduna state.
“Since the election did not hold, there was no way that results would have been announced to declare winners at the ward levels (Councillors) and at the Local Government Headquarters (Chairmen) as mandated in the KAD-SIECOM law, PART VI Section 23 (1) and (2).
“No such results were declared anywhere in the 12 LGAs of the Middle Belt zone of the state, otherwise known as Southern Kaduna.
“We have viewed documents on the social media purported to be KAD-SIECOM results sheets, apportioning votes to candidates of political parties, when clearly no such results were collated at the polls.
“Based on our observations, we wish to state that Governor Uba Sani has been held in the Middle Belt here as a democrat, a tolerant politician with a fair sense of justice and inclusivity in his governance. This is a happy departure from his predecessor, that we regard as tyrannical, insensitive, abusive and divisive.
“Ironically, former Governor Nasir el-Rufai that we regarded as a despot and had no good will to our people, showed some modicum of decency by allowing Local Government elections during his tenure to be hugely free and fair in the Middle Belt areas of Kaduna state. Even at that, his party, the APC, still won in some LGAs.
“It will therefore be very unfortunate and a huge minus to the integrity and trust that Governor Uba Sani has built among us if he allows the announcement of Hajia Hajara Mohammed to stand as the real results of yesterday’s supposed Local Government election.
“We plead with Kaduna State House of Assembly, to amend the KAD-SIECOM law to include heavy fines and jail terms for electoral offenses, especially for officials handling electoral matters.
“All our aggrieved members who paid to contest and spent so much in terms of money and time, should approach all the electoral panels and other judicial windows open for such appeal”. The statement said.
