Community Launches Campaign Against APC Lawmakers, Other Elected Officials Over Failed Promises

Among the politicians targeted by the campaign is the House of Representatives member, Hajiya Khadija Bukar Abba Ibrahim, who represents Damaturu/Gujba/Gulani/Tarmuwa Federal Constituency on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).Also, Senator Ibrahim Geidam, who represents Yobe East Senatorial District on the platform of the APC and Mustapha Gwarime, a member of the Yobe State House of Assembly member, were accused of failing their people.

Some leaders of the coalition told SaharaReporters that there is no need to re-elect politicians, some of whom have spent over a decade in office without making any meaningful impact in their constituencies.

He insisted that politicians who have not discharged their duty, and fulfilled the promises they took, will no longer be voted again.

The coalition however noted that the campaign cuts across all the political parties and their candidates contesting for any position in the forthcoming 2023 elections.

They lamented that the House of Representatives’ member, Abba Ibrahim had spent 16 years in her office but no one from her constituency “can point out a project of N10 million she executed in the whole of Buni Yadi community.”

Similarly, the community said that in his three years in office since he was elected in 2019, Senator Geidam “only contributed in the health sector where he brought some medicine to the community which is the only project he did to the community and never forward any problem of the community to the Senate.”

For the State House of Assembly member, Gwarime, the community said “he has never executed a project of even N5 million and never forwarded a problem of the Buni Yadi to the state assembly.” 

Asked what motivated them to form the group, the chairman of the coalition, who simply identified himself as Alhaji Gambo, said the group was formed to develop the community in terms of social, political and economic development.

Stressing that the group was registered in 2021 with its constitution and objectives, Gambo noted that “the campaign is to launch an orientation on people of the community to vote out any of the candidates who haven't done anything to the development of the community.”

The coalition chairman listed the major challenges the community has been facing without the intervention of their elected representatives to include “annual clashes between headers and farmers for almost five years now.

“Community people are suffering in terms of having portable drinking water as the people buy 240 litres (one truck) of water between the sum of N500 and N700 if there is no light and the government did not do anything to solve the problem for the community.

“The community lacks employment by the government as they promised during their campaign. Lack of enough competent and qualified teachers in our primary school. The governor solicited educational appeal funds to the state, and up till now, we have not seen any of its effects.

“There are not enough professional workers in our hospitals, which include doctors and nurses,” Gambo said.

Also speaking, a female member of the coalition, Talatun Sambo, told SaharaReporters that female members of the coalition “will go sensitising other women to the objective of the association and not to vote for a candidate who hasn't done anything to the development of the community.”

Another female member of the coalition, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they will mobilise community women “not to vote for our house of representatives member, (Hajiya Khadija Bukar Abba) because she spent almost 16 years on the seat and no one can point any N5 million project she did in the community.”

Ondomind