Gombe PDP Governorship Aspirants Warn Against Allowing Pantami Into Primaries

Gombe PDP Governorship Aspirants Warn Against Allowing Pantami Into Primaries

By Auwal Ahmad Umar

Four governorship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party in Gombe State have cautioned the party leadership against any alleged move to allow former APC governorship aspirant Isa Ali Pantami to participate in the party’s ongoing governorship primaries.

The aspirants warned that such a decision could violate democratic principles and expose the party to serious legal challenges ahead of the 2027 governorship election.

The warning was contained in a communiqué jointly signed by Alhaji Abdulkadir Hamma Saleh, Hon. Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki, Usman Aliyu Garry and Monica Kaltho on May 24, 2026.

According to the aspirants, they had earlier agreed to allow the leadership of the party to choose one among them as the consensus governorship candidate in the interest of unity and party stability.

They explained that the decision was reached out of respect for the leadership of former governor and PDP leader in the state, Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, as well as the State Executive Committee, local government party chairmen and members of the Elders Committee.

The communiqué stated that all the aspirants signed a written undertaking committing themselves to abide by the final decision of the party leadership regarding the emergence of the governorship candidate.

However, the aspirants expressed concern over reports alleging that Pantami, who participated in the governorship primaries of the All Progressives Congress on May 21, 2026, was making efforts to defect to the PDP in order to contest in its governorship primaries.

They argued that the law does not permit an aspirant who had already contested and secured votes in another party’s primary election to switch parties and participate in the same electoral process elsewhere.

While acknowledging that the PDP remains open to welcoming new members, the aspirants maintained that any such defection should not interfere with a primary process that is already at an advanced stage.

They further urged the party leadership to avoid actions capable of undermining the rule of law or creating avoidable legal disputes that could affect the party’s chances in the forthcoming election.

The aspirants warned that failure to handle the situation carefully could trigger litigation from aggrieved party members and opposition parties.

“As the saying goes, a stitch in time saves nine,” the communiqué concluded.