A gubernatorial aspirant under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe State, Alhaji Abdulkadir Hamma Saleh on Monday led his supporters to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Hamma Saleh who lost the gubernatorial ticket to Senator Usman Bayero Nafada last October, confirmed to Daily Trust in a telephone interview that he has defected to APC with thousands of his supporters.
He was also the senatorial candidate of the PDP in 2015 general elections and was defeated by Senator Bayero then of the APC.
Saleh, who also contested against Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo for the PDP ticket in 2011, said that he decided to leave the party over what he described as injustice and imposition of the governorship candidate on the party.
He said: “Today, I have resolved to leave the PDP with my supporters. This is a decision that we have taken after wide consultations. Because there is no prospect in the PDP as they cannot meet the aspirations of our people; therefore we are defecting to a party that can guarantee the aspirations of the good people of our dear state.
“I have been an active member of the party since 2011 when I contested and lost the primary election to Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo. I was also senatorial candidate of the party in 2015 and also contested in the last jamboree where Bayero was declared as the winner.”
He added that he defected to the APC not because of his personal interest, but for the general interest of the state populace.
He, therefore, urged all his supporters to join the APC and vote for all the party’s candidates in the 2019 elections.