The Borno State Chapter of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC on Friday said it is not responsible for the sealing up of a residential building that was alleged to have been illegally converted to a Secretariat by Kwankwaso`s NNPP in the state.
The said building was converted to New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP state secretariat by the leader of the party and its 2023 senatorial candidate for Borno central, Hon Mohammed Attom in Abbaganaram area of Maiduguri metropolis.
BASIC FACTS
- The Borno State chapter of the New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP) Thursday had its office sealed by security agencies.
- The Chairman of Borno state APC Friday absolved the party of complicity in the woes of the NNPP.
- The ruling APC is also in power in Borno State, and will be competing with the NNPC at both state and national levels
WHAT WE KNOW
The Chairman of the APC in Borno state, Hon. Ali Bukar Dalori in a statement on Friday, said the party and the APC state government are not responsible for the Thursday sealing of the NNPP secretariat in the state.
Armed policemen had on Thursday, sealed the newly renovated building. The Borno state commissioner of police, Abdul Umar had told journalists that his men were deployed to the building to forestall a breakdown of law and order by the aggrieved residents who felt the NNPP secretariat was constituting nuisance to the public.
However, in a press statement signed by the Chairman of the APC in Borno state, Hon Ali Bukar Dalori, on Friday expressed shock that the NNPP as an upcoming opposition party will point accusing fingers on the APC or Governor Babagana Zulum over the controversy between officials of Borno Urban Development Board (BUDB) and the owner of the property, Hon Attom.
NOTABLE QUOTES
The APC state Chairman in the press statement on Friday said, “Our attention has been drawn to an unsubstantiated claims that Borno APC and His Excellency, Governor Babagana Zulum were responsible for the sealing up of NNPP Secretariat in Maiduguri as alleged.
“As Chairman of Inter-Party Advisory Committee, IPAC, the umbrella body of all registered political parties in Nigeria, I want to emphatically state that, the APC in Borno has high respect for all political parties in the state, and by extension the National Leader of the NNPP, Rabiu Kwankwaso who was our former card carrying member before jumping out of the ship.
“To put the record straight, and as the law -abiding members of our great party are concern, we are not part of what happened between NNPP, officials of BUDB, the police and aggrieved residents of Abbaganaram where the sealed office is located.
“The Borno APC and Governor Zulum are not aware of their travails. I reiterate, as a law -abiding ruling party in the state, our party, the APC has never laid siege on even the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party’s, PDP’s property, talk less of an upcoming party, the NNPP.
“Secondly, from investigation available to our party, what transpired yesterday (Thursday), the Governor, Babagana Zulum neither the APC was aware of the development.
“This development was directly between an agency of government saddled with the responsibility of regulating and controlling buildings. Now, the NNPP Secretariat is located within the heart of the Maiduguri metropolis and its environs. It was a residential house prior to its forceful conversion and repainting it to NNPP office.
“As a result of illegally converting the said building into a party office, hoodlums and political thugs started hibernating in that place, and started smoking Indian helms and other sort of drugs thereby creating nuisance to the residents in that area. This prompted residents to petition the Borno Urban Development Board, BUDB.
“The BUDB, as an agency swung into action, and realizes that such property was a residential building, which brought about their fracas.
“Likewise, on the other building Hon. Attom was talking about, and with information at our Disposal revealed that, an approval was given to him to construct a 3-storey building, in violation of that approval, he constructed 5-storey building. Beside, several notices were sent to him, but he felt to acknowledge receipt or show up.
“So, that was what prompted Agency of Government to seal his office and then stop- work notice was sent to him.
“Therefore, the APC has not played any role, the fracas is between Hon. Attom and Agency of Government, not even the Governor of Borno or the APC behind it.
“On this note, the general public should be much aware that the APC, since taking over of office, has never been a party to enforce impunity. The candidates of the NNPP including its gubernatorial candidate, Dr Umar Alkali were just trying to get cheap popularity and sympathy from the law-abiding citizens of Borno, as they are crying more than the bereaved.
“If he (Attom) has alluded to the fact that, it was because of the coming of Rabiu Kwankwaso to Maiduguri, the man in question is not coming here today, Kwankwaso is billed to be in Maisuguri on 27th of this month, so what is the correlation between today and the date slated for the visit?.
“So, Attom’s claims is childish and we will respond to him at an appropriate time when campaigns started, as we have much respect to the 2022 Electoral Act and guidelines
CATCH-UP
The New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) is fielding Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso as a presidential candidate for the 2023 election, and will be competing with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) both locally in Borno State and at the national level.
It is on the bases of this that the sealing of the NNPP state secretariat on Thursday could be seen as an act of bad faith.
The leader of the opposition NNPP is also the landlord of the said property used as secretariat by the party.
He is now accusing APC of complicity in the sealing up of his property which doubles as the party secretariat.
COMMENTARY
Borno state North East, has it’s hands full with security crisis since 2010 when the Boko Haram insurgency became a public concern. However, the state some how managed to record a huge turn out in the 2015 elections.
Now the general elections of 2023 is a few months away, Clariform Newsdesk will like to appeal to political gladiators in the state not to escalate the tension in the already volatile state.
The government and her agencies should be tolerant of opposition, even as they maintain law and order within the confines of justice and fair play.
