PDP Elders Urge Tinubu to Call Matawalle to Order
The Northern Elders Unity Forum of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned the alleged use of state influence and financial inducement by the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Mohammed Matawalle Maradun, to lure PDP members into defecting to the All Progressives Congress (APC), particularly in Zamfara State.
The Forum described Matawalle’s actions as detrimental to the survival of opposition politics in the North-West, warning that such practices undermine democratic values.
In a statement issued in Gusau after a meeting with party elders from Kaura Namoda, Zurmi, Tsafe, and Bungudu Local Government Areas of Zamfara State, the Forum’s National Secretary, Dr. Abbas Sadauki (Dan Madamin Tofa), accused the minister of using “excess wealth and power” to coerce PDP members especially those holding party positions in Zamfara and Kaduna state to defect to the ruling party.
“Minister Mohammed Bello Matawalle is desperate to destroy the PDP in Zamfara and other states of the North-West because of the 2027 political ambition of his party, the APC, his use of power and political appointments to coerce many of our hardworking and loyal members has created a serious vacuum within the party leadership in the region.”
He lamented that the deliberate dismantling of opposition groups is “not a good omen for Nigeria’s democratic progress,” warning that many loyal PDP members are being misled into believing in false promises from the APC.
According to him, “This cannot augur well for the progress of genuine democracy in Nigeria. We are worried about the dangers this poses to our democracy; therefore, President Bola Tinubu should urgently call him to order.
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“His main target is to uproot all our democratic structures built to promote fairness, justice, and cohesion in Nigeria.”
The minister has not responded to the allegation and attempts to contact the money for comment were unsuccessful. Reports from Zamfara however indicate that over 24,000 PDP members including former executives and elders from six local government areas have so far defected to the APC.
The Forum urged President Tinubu and other national leaders to protect the integrity of Nigeria’s democratic system by discouraging political intimidation and inducement.
