Nasarawa PDP investigates members over party’s loss

Leaders and members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Nasarawa State are currently being investigated over allegations that they collected monetary gratifications to work against the party’s victory at the April 11 governorship and House of Assembly elections.

The party rose from a stakeholders’ meeting with a directive to its chairmen at the local government level to commence investigations into allegations made at the meeting that some highly placed leaders and members betrayed the common cause of the party, and worked for either the All Progressives Congress (APC) or the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

The PDP came a distant third in the governorship election, with its candidate, Yusuf Agabi, polling126,882. Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura of the APC won his re-election with 309,656 to defeat Labaran Maku of APGA, who polled 178,983, and Agabi.

The PDP also failed to return its majority in the state Assembly. The party won only five of the 24 seats, while the APC cleared the rest. This, stakeholders at the meeting blamed on alleged anti-party activities by some highly placed party figures.

The meeting, which was attended by members of the party’s executive council, and the state deputy governor, Dameshi Barau Luka, observed that some leaders of the party accepted gratifications to work for other parties, an allegation that set the motion for the directive given to chairmen of the PDP at the local government level, to investigate and report back.

State party spokesman, Yohanna Mark Neto, confirmed in a chat with Daily Trust, yesterday, that the meeting raised issues about the likelihood that some persons accepted bribe to work against the party.