Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State’s planned decamping from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress has collapsed as a proposed power-sharing formula accord failed to sail through.
The consultations between Mohammed, his Turaki-led PDP faction collapsed as the APC leadership turned down a 60–40 formula for the control of party structure in the state.
The governor and his followers have, however, said they would join other political parties, adding that they are considering fresh options for possible defection from the ward to the state level.
The Chairman of the Turaki-led PDP faction in the state, Sama’ila Burga, told journalists on Saturday that the APC had shown it never wanted to accommodate the PDP structure and the state government.
According to Burga, the APC opened talks through the governor, involving its national leadership and the Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, who visited Bauchi to persuade Mohammed to join the party.
Burga revealed that said the negotiation, however, didn’t sail through after the APC rejected the 60–40 sharing formula, adding that it was the formula adopted in similar negotiations in other states.
Burga said “this is how it has been done in other places where governors defected to APC. They rejected this formula and we have closed that discussion. You cannot expect a governor bringing his structure from ward level to the state not to have control of the party.
“We have called for this press conference at the instance of His Excellency, the Governor, who is leading the discussions,” adding after extensive consultations with stakeholders, the PDP faction resolved to discontinue the talks.
He said “sfter careful consideration, it became clear that the conditions collectively advanced for such a political realignment were not accepted by the APC leadership.
“In light of this, we want to announce that the discussions have not yielded a conclusive outcome and are hereby formally discontinued.”
He said the party is now exploring alternative political platforms.
Burga said “while we appreciate the outreach and engagement by the APC, we wish to state unequivocally that the process has now been brought to a close.
“Consequently, the PDP in Bauchi State, in consultation with His Excellency and other critical stakeholders, is actively considering all available political options other than the APC to determine the most suitable path forward in line with the aspirations and best interests of the people of Bauchi State.”
