APC ASPIRANT DRAGS THE PARTY TO COURT

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APC ASPIRANT DRAGS THE PARTY TO COURT

An All Progressives Congress aspirant for the Borno North Senatorial District, Hajiya Fati Kakenna, has expressed readiness to drag the party and her opponent, Senator Abubakar Kyari, to court over the alleged manipulation of the primary in her senatorial district.

Kakenna, who lost out to Kyari at the primary, complained it was illegal and against the party’s guidelines “for an aspirant who was not screened to find his name on the ballot papers and subsequently be manipulated to win a primary.”

She said it was criminal for Kyari’s name to be slotted on the ballot papers when he had contested and lost in the state’s governorship primary a few days earlier.

She alleged that the state governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, was involved in the “injustice and criminality” because he allegedly pressured all other aspirants to step down for Kyari.

She said while three other aspirants were pressured to step down for Kyari, she stood her ground.

Speaking to journalists on the primary’s outcome on Friday, Kakenna said, “We were three senatorial aspirants who purchased nomination forms and were screened by the National Working Committee of our party, so it was shocking to me when I saw Senator Abubakar Kyari’s name on the ballot papers because I knew he just contested the governorship primary and lost.

“Then, I found out he purchased two forms-the governorship and senatorial but only submitted the governorship form and never went for the screening for senatorial aspirants. He didn’t even submit the form.

“But I was shocked when I saw him when they called all the senatorial and House of Representatives aspirants into the state APC chairman’s office for an address.

“I am demanding we must all be given equal treatment. If someone who contested the governorship primary three days ago without being part of the senatorial screening is now contesting for the Senate, then something is fundamentally wrong and this must not be allowed.

“As a matter of urgency, I am calling on the national chairman of our great party and the women leader of the APC to reject any manipulation.”