From Lawal Sa’idu Funtua, Katsina
No fewer than 1400 members of the All Progressive Congress, APC, yesterday defected to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Kafur Local Government Area of Katsina State.
Addressing the defectors at a ceremony organized to receive them, the Deputy Govnor of the state, Alhaji Abdullahi Garba Faskari, praised the efforts of PDP stakeholders in the area for working hard to win new members for the party.
He similarly assured the defectors that the party would not discriminate against them as according to him, “ Today, you are equal with old members of our great party and we hope you will put in your best in spreading the ideals of the party across the state.”
The deputy governor therefore urged the entire people of the state to continue to support the PDP administration in the state, adding that the party’s rule in the state had since 1999 transformed it in all sectors and bringing development closer to the people.
Also speaking, the Director-General of the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria, SMEDAN, Alhaji Bature Umar Masari, said the defectors willingly resolved to dump their former party to join PDP according to him ‘ because of the wonderful performance of the state governor’.
He added “the defectors approached us that they want to join PDP from APC. We didn’t give a single kobo to any of them. In fact it was their former party that attempted to induce them but they refused. Initially it was 1000 that were defecting; but the number kept on increasing’.
Speaking on behalf of the defectors, Alhaji Mairiga Abdullahi stressed that the defectors decided to abandon their former party due to the good performance of the state governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Shehu Shema in transforming the state.
