The All Progressives Congress (APC), Kebbi State, has received more than 1,500 members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from the Zuru Emirate.
While receiving the defectors in Birnin Kebbi at the APC State Secretariat, the state APC Chairman, Alhaji Abubakar Kana-Zuru, stated that if the Governor, Dr Nasir Idris, had done only the Koko-Dabai-Zuru road, it would be enough for the people of Zuru Emirate to return him for a second term.
He noted that the governor did not stop at road construction but also renovated health facilities such as primary healthcare centres, hospitals, schools, and more.
The chairman assured the defectors that they would receive equal treatment like any other member, insisting the party would not differentiate between old and new members.
According to him, “Whatever we do as a party, we are going to involve everybody regardless of new or old members. I want you all to feel at home, because you have made the right choice.”
Explaining his reason for defecting, Alhaji Lawali Arzika Riba, former PDP candidate for the Kebbi State House of Assembly, said he was greatly impressed by Governor Idris’s execution of various developmental projects across the state.
“I am also impressed by the coordinated efforts of both the state and federal governments in collaboration with security agencies that led to the rescue of abducted schoolgirls from Government Girls’ Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga.
“It only takes a courageous leader to swiftly put machinery in place to accomplish such a mission. Kaura deserves special commendation,” Arzika Riba noted.
While appreciating the governor’s benevolence, Arzika Riba, however, accused some of the governor’s lieutenants of not helping him succeed through free-will gifts.
On their part, a renowned celebrity in Kebbi State, Binta Bena, and a prominent politician from Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area, Hajiya Maryam, also attributed their defection to the governor’s good works.
They said they decided to join the APC because of the sterling leadership exhibited by the Kebbi governor, assuring that the PDP was no longer present in their area and pledging to deliver bloc votes for the APC in future elections.
