By Hussaini Mohammed Baba, Maiduguri
Hajiya Fatima Kakinna, Borno All Progressive Congress (APC) Women Leader, on Saturday decried victimisation of women aspirants who participated in different primary elections in the state.
She also alleged that the Borno APC stakeholders and government officials had ganged up against all the female aspirants contesting for various positions in different zones at the ongoing primaries.
Kakinna, an aspirant of the National Assembly, APC (Northern Borno) made the allegation while answering questions from news men in Maiduguri, on Saturday.
Kakinna had earlier raised an alarm that Governor Shettima had changed all delegates at the ongoing House of Representatives primaries which was declared inconclusive on Thursday by Alhaji Ahmed El-Marzuq, the Chairman of the Electoral Committee.
Dr Zainab Gimba, an aspirant of the House of Representatives from Bama, Ngala and Kalabalge federal constituency, emerged winner in the Thursday’s inconclusive election held in Maiduguri Elkenemy Worriors stadium, when she polled 76 votes while her closest rival Nur Sharif got 50 votes.
Alhaji Abdulrazak scored five votes while Baba Mala Kaigama and Sule Gambo scored zero votes.
El-Marzuq declared the election inconclusive after dozens of police men armed with weapons from the Government house stormed the scene and stopped the election. They told the aspirants that they were acting on orders from Governor Kashim Shettima.
He said that delegates from three words of Gamborun Ngala voted while directing those from Bama, Kala-balge to return on Friday for the continuation of the exercise.
The women leader said that the postponement was to give room to compromise party members to enable them rig the election in favour of Nur-Sharrif.
Kakinna, who warned that handpicking of candidates for elective positions regardless of the electoral value of such candidates, spells doom for the progress of democracy in the state and the country.
She said it was sad that many aspirants were forced to withdraw after purchasing their forms saying some were told to obtain forms but denied free and fair election, noting that those who refused to jettison their ambition were intimidated and rigged out by force.
“In my case, I will say there was no election because the delegates from Abadam and Gubio started casting their votes and Guzamala went almost halfway when Alhaji Ahmed El-Marzuq, the Chairman of the Electoral Committee announced that the ballot papers for voting has finished. We were all shocked and we asked him how that was possible, when initially he told us that all was set for our primaries.
“When we demanded for answers to his actions, he told us that the problem was from the National Working Committee of the APC who did not provide enough electoral materials. He said we should wait until the next day (Friday), to continue with the exercise. Though, prior to the commencement of the exercise, competent sources have told me that Governor Shettima had deployed nine permanent Secretaries and all the newly elected caretaker Chairmen with the directive that they should do everything possible to rig the election in favour of his preferred candidate or risk losing the election.
“But I was never worried because I know my people will solidly stand behind me to reject any attempt by the desperate agents.
“We later agreed with other aspirants to go and come back the next day to continue the election. But immediately I left the place, the Committee connived with the Governor’s agents to stage the primaries in my absence and announced the winner. As I am talking to you, I only received the news from my house. But I am not shocked because I am a strong politician; I know where to seek redress as a citizen of the federal republic of Nigeria. At the end, I promise them that I will have my way.
The woman leader, who vowed to mobilise all her supporters to exercise the will of the people during the general election, said those who stole their mandate should know that it is not the end.
“We shall fight to the end. He may have his way, all the powers and the money, but he should know we have God and our God is bigger than anybody. Those who know me well should tell him that he had made a very big mistake. We shall see. It is now between me and him”, she warned.
In a related issue, Gimba said she and her supporters had slept at the Elkanemy Stadium for three days noting that no explanation was given by the National Working Committee for the delay.
She said she was informed that there was a deliberate attempt to ignore her delegates and bring in new sets of persons on her behalf at the Borno state Hotel to announce a winner.
She said that the plan was orchestrated by the National Working Committee and the Borno state government working toward forcing a rejected candidate on the people.
However, Governor Kashim Shettima has ordered his aides not to respond to or attack the APC women leader or any aggrieved aspirant.
According to Malam Isa Gusau, the Special Assistant on Media and Strategy to the Governor, he said Shettima has directed all his media aides and publicity associates, particularly in the online and social media, never to come up with any media attacks against the person of the state APC women leader, Hajja Fati Kakinna saying the women leader remains his sister and political associate.
He said rather, his associates should defend Kakinna should anyone outside them choose to fly negative things about her.
The Governor made the call minutes after Hajja Kakinna released a video raining curses on him.
“Shettima said as leader of the APC in Borno State he has already prepared his mind to receive both praises and wild insults in the aftermath of the primaries”.
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