Senator Danjuma Goje
‘Goje, a liability, only fear of EFCC keeping him in the party,’ says APC Youth Vanguard, as ex-gov makes U-turn on defection
Former Governor of Gombe State, and now senator representing Gombe Central at the senate, Danjuma Goje has made a U-turn on his planned defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying he is still a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Goje who announced through his close associates last week of his ‘perfected’ plans to join the PDP ‘as soon as possible’, denied such claims saying; ‘I am still a member of APC,’ even as he blamed the media for the ‘fake news.’
Goje who was quoted as deniying the defection plans during a brief telephone chat with a publication, Tuesday, described reports of his defection as fake news, calling on the media to always get their facts right before running with it.
However, the former governor’s sudden U-turn may not be unconnected with a 7-day ultimatum given to him to ‘make good his planned homecoming to his one-time party, the PDP,’ by the APC Youth Vanguard.
The Gombe chapter of the APC Youth group said Goje was merely ‘flying kites in order to draw public attention to his plight on his now threatened ambition to seek 5th term tenure at the senate otherwise Senator Goje cannot muster the ability to dump APC.’
The group, in a petition to the Chairman Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CCECPC), Governor Mai Mala Buni, signed by Alhaji Abubakar Bello and Sani Saidu Tumfure, said its position was informed by statements credited to the former governor over a planned defection to the PDP, as they further accused Goje of ‘anti-party activities.’
“Left to us, we consider his continuous stay in the APC as a liability. Infact, he is only flying kites in order to draw public attention to his plight vis-a-vis his now threatened ambition to seek 5th term tenure at the senate otherwise Senator Goje cannot muster the ability to dump APC.
“Needless to say, what is keeping Senator Goje in the APC is the fear of EFCC and other anti-corruption agencies but not that he has the interest of the party at heart. We hereby issue him with a one week ultimatum to quit, IF HE CAN.
“According to an online publication, Senator Goje has not made a formal declaration, but Starnews NG has quoted one of his close associates who has hinted that the former Gombe Governor has already informed his core loyalists of his decision to return to the PDP”.
“As concerned, members of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Gombe State who are fully conscious and desirous of seeing to the consolidation and preservation of the great success recorded by our party in 2019 and in preparation for 2023, we deem it necessary to clarify certain misinformation for the benefit of our members nationwide and especially our leadership at the national level.
“Even though we do not hold brief for the APC in Gombe State, however, it’s highly pertinent to understand in the first place, that Senator Goje only joined the APC at the eve of the 2015 general elections along with few of his colleagues Ex-Governors some of whom have since returned back to the PDP. Therefore, we see nothing new if he equally tread the same path.
“Not only that, our entire party machinery both at the National and State level, would recall that Senator Goje had shown strong hatred and disdain for our able President Buhari dating back to the ill treatment meted out against his Presidential Campaign team on a visit to Gombe when Goje was Governor.
“This is a man that derives pleasure in committing anti-party activities especially during the 2019 general elections when he chose to side with the opposition against the current Senator B.K. Amos of Gombe South. Furthermore, even within our great party, he has been acting against the wish of the majority, particularly with the way and manner that he campaigned against our incumbent Governor Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya during the 2019 party primaries.
“Equally too, Senator Goje has made efforts to quash the aspirations of current Senator Saidu Alkali of Gombe North, Hon. Usman Bello Kumo now representing Akko Federal Constituency and Hon. Abdullahi Abubakar Tumu representing Akko West at the Gombe State House of Assembly.
“Senator Danjuma Goje’s penchant to misuse power and fight everybody is widely known. This is the same person that had cause to wage war against the then sitting Vice President Atiku Abubakar while on a visit to Gombe State, not to talk of his aborted desire to outsmart the current Senate President Ahmad Lawan and his scheming to become APC’s National Chairman.
“At the home front, the Senator is sparing no effort to sabotage our hardworking Governor Inuwa Yahaya. Infact, it’s like he wanted to outshine our able Governor. No wonder that as of today, none of his renown hitherto close political associates and personal staff are with him, e.g his former Chief of Staff, Lamido Umar Chikaire, Senator Idris A. Umar, Alh. Habu Mu’azu, Alh Tanko Isiyaku Gwamna, etc,” the group stated.
