Adamawa: Seven aspirants move to stop Ribadu, Marwa, three others

The scramble for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ticket for the October 11 governorship bye-election in Adamawa State has taken a new twist.
Seven of the 14 aspirants have called for the disqualification of five of their co-aspirants from the race, alleging that they are not members of the PDP.
The petitioners are – Umar Ardo, Ahmed Gulak, James Barka, Andrawus Sawa, Abubakar Girei, Idi Hong and Awwal Tukur.
In their petition, dated August 28 and addressed to the leadership of the party, they listed Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, Buba Marwa, Mohammed Modibbo, Marcus Gundiri and Aliyu Kama.
The petitioners stated that the five aspirants are not members of the party and therefore should not be allowed to contest the election.
They said, “While on personal level we have absolutely no reason to wish to inhibit them from contesting the governorship of our state under the platform of our great party – for they are all eminently qualified.
“But on the principle of playing a healthy political game, everybody must play according to the rules of the game. On this ground therefore we object to their contest as their participation will be an aberration to the election process. The issues against them are both constitutional and moral.
“Constitutionally, Mallam Ribadu, Engr. Gundiri and Dr. Modibbo joined the PDP for the first time only recently, while Marwa and Kama returned to the PDP also only recently after earlier defecting from PDP to other political parties.
“Going by the provisions of Sections 50 (9) and (10) and 8 (b) of the Constitution of the PDP 2012 (as amended), Ribadu, Gundiri and Modibbo are required to sustain continued membership of the PDP for a minimum of two years to be eligible to contest for the post of Governor; while Marwa and Kama remain on probation for at least one year, during which they will not be eligible to vote or be voted for except they are granted waivers as stipulated.
“Both sides have not met the requirements. The purpose of the waiting period, subject to waiver, is to test the fidelity of persons who have joined or decamped to the party.
“These provisions are important as they are actually meant to ensure that only credible and loyal members of the party are allowed the benefits and privileges of the party and also to ward off the proclivity of Nigerian politicians to defect from one party to the other at will without consequences.”