Zamfara State’s former governor, Abdulaziz Yari, has welcomed the defection of Governor Bello Matawalle to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
TrackNews Online reports that Matawalle is to be received officially by the national leadership of the party in Gusau today, Tuesday, as he leaves the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Speaking to APC Stakeholders from all the Local Governments of the state at a meeting in Kaduna, Yari said the party welcomes Matawalle into the party but he and other stakeholders are still holding meetings to see how every member of the party will be treated fairly.
“We will not take any position without our people’s consent that is why we invited all the stakeholders to make a stand. We will not decide on anything that will not be of benefit to the party as well as the state.
” We agreed that the Governor is coming with authority while we have the population in the state. So we hope and pray that his coming to the part will be beneficial and will add value to the party in the state. So, he is welcome,” he said.
Meanwhile, the PDP has warned Matawalle that he may have to forfeit his position if he proceeds with plans to defect to the APC.
This is as the PDP argued that the governorship position occupied by Matawalle in Zamfara State is based on the people’s vote for the party and not for him as a person.
The PDP said according to the 1999 constitution, Matawalle is just an agent of the party occupying the position and if he dumps the party that brought him to power, he must be ready to relinquish power as well.
“A combined reading of Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution as the pronouncements of the Supreme Court in Faleke v. INEC (2016) is clear in holding that it is the political party that stands for election, that votes scored in election belong to the political party and that the candidate nominated to contest at an election by his party, acts only as the agent of his party,” PDP spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan told newsmen in a statement on Monday.
The PDP went further to argue that members of the National Assembly from the state as well as members of the Zamfara State House of Assembly may also lose their seats if they join the governor in defecting.
