Adamawa Speaker Denies Plans To Dump APC
The Adamawa State House of Assembly Speaker, Bathiya Wesley, has denied rumours that he has concluded plans to defect from the All Progressives Congress to the Action People’s Movement.
The rumour came barely 24 hours after the former Speaker of the Adamawa State House of Assembly and serving member representing Yola-South State Constituency, Kabiru Mijinyawa, and thousands of his supporters defected from the APC and joined the APM.
Mijinyawa accused his former party of practising autocracy instead of democracy, alleging that the APC in Adamawa State was being run as a private estate by a few individuals to the detriment of the party’s progress.
The former Speaker’s exit from the APC came two days after hundreds of party chieftains, led by Tahir Shehu, defected to the APM.
Speaking in Yola, a member of the APC executive, who did not want his name in print because he was not authorised to speak to journalists, said the Speaker’s planned defection was aimed at securing a House of Representatives ticket after he was denied the opportunity to contest on the APC platform.
“The speaker is defecting to pick his National Assembly ticket in APM he was contesting for House of Representatives, but some people use their office powers and send him away”.
“If the speaker defects to APM he will win his election without stress, his people like him more than any politicians in Hong constituency, and he is performing his constitutional duties perfectly, “he said.
However, reacting to the rumour, the Press Secretary to the Speaker, Bernard Hyellamada, denied the claim, describing it as fake information.
He claimed that the Speaker had no intention of abandoning the APC after investing his energy and resources in promoting the party to a high level.
“Let me tell you categorically that the speaker is not going anywhere, he remain in APC till after 2027 general elections “, he stated.
The APC executive member added that the genesis of the crisis in the Adamawa State chapter of the APC started during the primary elections, when, he alleged, candidates were picked without respecting the rule of law.
The Peoples Democratic Party wing in the APC may use the 21 local government chairmen and 206 ward councillors elected on the platform of the PDP as a deciding factor in the 2027 general elections in Adamawa State.
