FROM: PAUL ORUDE, BAUCHI
A former Minister of Police Affairs and gubernatorial aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ibrahim Lame, has declared his intention to contest the Bauchi State governorship election, in 2019.
Lame made this known, on Tuesday, while addressing his supporters who visited him, in Bauchi, to facilitate with him on his appointment by President Muhammadu Buhari as Chairman of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA).
The former minister, who lost to the incumbent governor in the party’s primaries in2015, said his intention of seeking the seat for the second time was to repair “the destruction of Bauchi” by the current administration in the state.
He recalled that he, along with other well-meaning politicians, “met over 100 times with several supporters and groups to successfully dislodge ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in 2015”
Lame said the reason for forming the All Progressives Congress (APC) was to bring about change in the country.
He, however, lamented that, “In Bauchi State, nothing has changed since 2015. This lack of change has not changed our resolve and so we must renew our desire for coming together in the first place to repair the destruction of our state.
“We know what the problem is and we know the steps we must take to address it.
“We cannot be silent without having a concrete plan for repair. Most of my supporters have gone to radio stations and you have cone today calling on me to run, I want to let you know that that the desire to run and fix the problem of Bauchi State is even stronger than 2015.
“I assure you that every preparation that you as my supporters are making, we have also gone far. Even those you don’t not think are with us are with us in this journey and we must adopt the right path in our quest.
“We will continue to thank those who have been going to radio stations like Honourable Ahmed Yerima, who has been outstanding, fighting for the truth and the state”
The former minister also said that his doors were wide opened for consultations , even with those who betrayed him in 2015 during the controversial primaries of the party, “provided they have learnt their lesson and repented”
Lame, who emerged first runner up in the primaries in 2015, was defeated by Governor Abubakar with a margin of 120 votes.
Lame nursed the idea of going to court unless there was a rerun, alleging that the party’s election committee officials deliberately plotted to favour his arch-rival, Abubakar, to win the governorship primaries.
He said the committee allowed over-voting and denied delegates, believed to be his supporters, a voting chance.
According to him, “The experience of 2015 where candidates were elected because of the popularity of President Buhari will not repeat itself. I advise you to investigate those you want to vote as leaders. The panful fact is that instead of our leaders in the state to follow due process as laid down by the party, they are at the forefront when it comes to destroying it. Beware of this kind of politicians.
“This this time around, we will not accept those who come with mischievous intentions, those that come with aim of cheating us, our country and children to come along with us. We will not allow it.
“I want to assure you that whatever has been destroyed in Bauchi State will be fixed when I am elected. We all know that so many things have been destroyed”
Earlier, Lame’s supporters who came from the various part of the state, said they came to expressed their happiness with his recent appointment as NAMA Chairman and thanked President Buhari for the gesture saying Lame is a man of the people who worked tireless to entrench APC in the state.