Scores of Yobe PDP leaders who decamped and were received within the folds of the All Progressives congress (APC) in the state in a ceremony in Damaturu today have cited the progress being made by the Gaidam administration in roads development, healthcare, education, etc. as some of the reasons why they decided to join the APC and the governor to move the state forward.
“The achievements of Gov. Gaidam are enormous and we want to be part of his genuine effort to move our state forward. Look at the chain of roads we now have in the state. Anyone who knew what it used to be to drive from Gashu’a to Yusufari or from Nguru to Machina would appreciate the roads that Governor Gaidam has built in those areas. It wasn’t easy or fun to drive in those sandy terrains but thanks to the governor, things have now changed for the better.
The establishment of a Teaching Hospital in Damaturu is also another success story we want to be part of”
– Jibir Maigari, a former federal minister and one of the PDP leaders who decamped to the APC said.
Arc. Mohammed Saleh, a stalwart of the PDP and former housing commissioner in the state spoke in similar vein. He cited progress in healthcare and education as well as Yobe’s remarkable performance in salary payments at a time that other states were failing to pay their workers as things every patriotic Yobe citizen should be proud of.
“We have no reason to be in opposition. Our interest is the progress of our state. Governor Gaidam is championing that progress. It’s always a thing of joy and pride to us that the stands out in terms of regular payment of salaries, gratuities, and pensions. He is doing remarkably well in education and healthcare. Therefore, we join him to deliver more to the people”, he said.
H.E Governor Gaidam, who described the large turn out of people at the event as ‘clear indication’ that the APC is ‘waxing stronger’ in the state, said the policies, programmes and manifesto of the party and its performance at the state and federal level “has endeared our party to the hearts of many people”.
He said the decision of the Yobe PDP leaders to decamp to the APC is a wise one, “a homecoming and a journey to where they rightly belong”.
“Let the whole world note that those formally decamping or returning home today are all high-profile individuals and politicians made of a former minister, former members of national and state houses of assembly, former acting chairman of the PDP in Kano State, former commissioners and a retired permanent secretary. There are also former local government chairmen and party executives at state and federal levels and others too numerous to mention”, the governor said.
The governor commended the decampees for their foresight, assuring them that they are fully pledged members of the APC from today. “I assure them that we shall continue to recognise and accord them all the rights and privileges that are being enjoyed by other APC supporters in the state”, he said.
The governor also charged them to ‘strive hard to advance the cause of the party’. “Let’s collectively work to convince the rest of your supporters who are still sitting on the fence to come join us too. As our brothers, we need them. Yobe is the home of APC and all false suitors have no place here”, he said.
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