APC aspirants reject results of Adamawa South senatorial primary

Five All Progressives Congress (APC) aspirants contesting the Adamawa South Senatorial seat have demanded disqualification of the winner.

Senator Grace Bent, Senator Muhammad Mo’Allahyidi, Bridget Zidon, Barrister Bala Sanga and Sani Jada said results were manufactured in favour of Adamu Ismaila Numan who emerged as candidate.

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Speaking at a press conference in Yola, a spokesman fot the aspirants, Bala Sanga, said immediately the election commenced on 28th May, Numan’s agent engaged in vote buying, attracting protests from other contestants, as the result of which the election was rescheduled to the next day.

He said despite the aspirants’ rejection of the rescheduled time, the committee went ahead to hold the election in their absence, thereby denying them the chance to participate.

In a petition to the Election Appeal Committee dated 29th May, the aspirants accused Numan of vote buying and colluding with election officials to exclude other aspirants and declare him winner.

“Most of the delegates had scattered in the senatorial zone with distances apart of almost four hours. It is humanly impossible to have gathered back the delegate in the absence of good selves and our agents”, he said.

In his response, Numan dismissed the allegations as false, saying the five aspirants simply refused to accept defeat after the election.

He said, “We had earlier agreed to allow our agents to assist those who could not write. The first few that came to vote went to my agents and suddenly they (opponents) shouted vote buying! vote buying”.

“When eventually the election was rescheduled, I mobilized my agents and delegates and we went to the venue and voted and I won’t.”