Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, has insisted he will remain in the Peoples Democratic Party where he was elected as the fifth civilian governor of the state.
The decision was in response to overtures from former governor and Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, urging the governor to join the All Progressives Congress.
Speaking to The PUNCH on the phone, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Communications, Mustafa Kaura, said, Lawal had since made it clear that he would not abandon the party that gave him the ticket to contest the governorship election and won in 2023.
“Some people have been spreading rumours that Governor Dauda Lawal is planning to dump his party, the PDP, and join APC.
“There is no iota of truth in this. As such, I want the PDP supporters to disregard this.
“Governor Dauda Lawal will remain in the PDP and has no intention of joining any other party. He is a true believer who believes in God and whatever God has destined to happen must happen, no matter the party he belongs,” he said.
Matawalle, in a statement issued in Gusau on Sunday by the former Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Ibrahim Dosara, had called on the governor to join the APC.
The minister made the call on Saturday at his residence in his hometown in Maradun, while receiving thousands of supporters who paid him a Sallah homage.
He urged Lawal to join the progressives for the progress of the state, asking him to come out in the open and join the APC, instead of sneaking around.
“Dauda Lawal should come and join the APC rather than the hide-and-seek type of game he is currently playing,” Matawalle said.
The minister assured Lawal that he did not hold any grudge against him, adding that Lawal was highly welcome into the comfortable fold of the APC.
Matawalle also urged Lawal to embrace the APC to join what he described as the trailblazer of security, progress, developments, peace and tranquillity.
He also enjoined the governor to justify the humongous federal allocations by providing developmental projects and basic infrastructure across the state.
The minister described President Bola Tinubu as a progressive leader and a good manager of peace and tranquillity.
“President Tinubu’s focus is on the development of the country and welcomes all wishing to join the trailblazer of peace, harmony, growth and development,” he said.
The minister urged the APC supporters in the state to support the President, particularly in the areas of security, agriculture, health, social well-being and economic development.
He said the president had Zamfara at heart and he was always looking forward to salvaging its current situation of insecurity and economic hardship.
The minister recalled how the administration recently eliminated several terrorists’ kingpins and their foot soldiers, who were hitherto terrorising the state, the region and the country in general.
Matawalle said the Ministry of Defence and the security high commands were working out modalities to ensure compliance with the presidential directives to flush out terrorists and bandits from the country.
