Why Gombe APC Chieftain, Muhammad Barde defected to PDP

Ex-gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Gombe State, Muhammad Barde, on Monday, defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), claiming “bad governance” as the only reason for his defection.

Barde said he defected in February 2021 when he failed to revalidate his membership with the ruling party.

He said, “I have formally come to pay my respect to our great party, I left APC when the party asked its members to go through a revalidation exercise. Eventually, I took the membership of the party PDP on February 2nd 2021.

“I’m not leaving APC for any reason other than bad governance. What we are witnessing is a government of a person, by a person, and for a person, not a government of the people, for the people, and by the people.

“At the appropriate time, we will tell indigenes of Gombe State that self-aggrandising and accumulation of wealth by one individual cannot solve our problem and we are prepared to protect our common wealth.”

Barde bemoaned the constant meddling by the present government in the traditional institution, referring to the regime’s statement as cruel.

He said, “This administration has engaged in callous statement, which goes as far as inciting unrest in the state; from Tangale Waja to Dukku and Yalmatu Deba LGAs, we are all one people in this state. We are interwoven, inter-related.

“Leadership is a sacred trust by our forefathers; that trust must be carried along and must be protected if need be at whatever cost.

“When you have government inciting violence, that doesn’t care about the development of the youths, that doesn’t give opportunity to women and girls; when you have a leadership that thrives on threats, our answer to them is clear; PDP will form government in 2023.

“Our traditional institution is sacred and we are prepared to protect at all cost. What we want is respect for our traditional institutions that have established these Emirates.”

Remarking on the deterioration in healthcare services in the state, he said that the death rate is on the rise in the state, relating poor budgetary allocation in feeding students to poor academic performance.

Barde added, “The maternal and infant mortality rate in the state speaks volumes, the rate of our infrastructure in the state, particularly in the healthcare as well as other social services.”