Niger PDP says ex-Gov. Aliyu remains suspended over anti-party activities

PDP in Niger on Tuesday says former Gov. Babangida Aliyu, remains suspended over alleged anti-party activities.

Party spokesman in the state, Yahaya Usman, told newsmen in Minna that Aliyu was suspended over his alleged role in truncating former President Goodluck Jonathan’s chance of winning the 2015 presidential election.

Usman noted that the party’s leaders in the state’s three senatorial districts reaffirmed their support for the suspension of the former governor as leader of the party in the state.

“We now support Rivers governor, Nyesom Wike, who said that former Gov. Aliyu owed the PDP an apology for admitting that he undermined the party in the 2015 elections.

“We have been vindicated; we had told Nigerians that Dr Aliyu betrayed us and worked for the ruling APC during the elections.

“He betrayed the party, betrayed former President Goodluck Jonathan and also betrayed our governorship candidate, Alhaji Umar Nasko.

“We said it several times that he went as far as donating funds to the opposition party in the state,’’ Usman said.

Wike had in a recent live interview on television said: “we were campaigning, not knowing that Aliyu was undermining us, and then he also ran for the Senate in that election and lost. Babangida Aliyu owes an apology to the PDP.’’

Aliyu admitted in a statement earlier in the week that the 19 Northern governors worked against former President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election in 2015.

He said this was because there was an agreement with Jonathan to serve only one term, an agreement on which Jonathan reneged.

Jonathan denied the statement saying that Aliyu was a pathological liar and a backstabber.

Similarly, former governors Jonah Jang of Plateau and Sule Lamido of Jigawa have also denied knowledge of the agreement cited by Aliyu.

Usman also told newsmen that the PDP in Niger has elevated former deputy governor of the state, Dr Shem Zagbayi, as the new leader of the party.