The appeal panel set up by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to consider matters emanating from the Governorship and National Assembly primaries has upheld the disqualification of some aspirants.
Some of the high profile disqualifications included: A former Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba and the Political Adviser to the Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Uba Sani.
Our investigation in Abuja, yesterday, indicated that pressures mounted by some state governors, especially the Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai as well as the wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, did nothing to influence the committee.
The committee upheld the automatic ticket given to Senator Shehu Sani and refused to uphold the primary which produced Senator Aliyu Lawal and Dr. Abba Ibrahim.
The party’s primaries held across the country were marred by violence, allegations of irregularities and disqualifications of aspirants.
Several of these issues led to a series of meetings between the party leadership, some aggrieved governors and President Muhammadu Buhari.
The president’s wife, who felt slighted by the party for failing to support the emergence of her brother, Mahmoud Halilu, as governorship candidate in her native Adamawa State; took to her twitter handle to register her displeasure.
She had tweeted “It is disheartening to note that some aspirants used their hard earned money to purchase nomination forms, got screened, cleared and campaigned vigorously yet found their names omitted on Election Day, these forms were bought at exorbitant prices.”