The campaign team of President Goodluck Jonathan was startled in Yola, yesterday when the state chapter of the PDP said it will back Mr Jonathan’s aspiration in the forthcoming primaries; but only if the Adamawa state governor, Murtala Nyako, has the backing of the presidency in his bid to return to power.

Nonetheless, Talhatu Sarki Tafida, the Director General of the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign organisation, which has toured 15 out of the 36 states of the federation to canvass support for the president and his vice in the build up to the PDP primaries, was satisfied that the PDP in the state was in support of the presidency.

“They confirmed their support for the Goodluck- Sambo ticket and that is very heart warming,” he said.

Others on the campaign train for the meeting, held at the banquet hall of the government house, were Hassan Adamu, Bamanga Tukur, Silas Jonathan Zwingina, Zainab Maina, Ismaila Sambawa and Ahmed Ali Gulak. Mr Nyako, the leader of the party in the state, was represented by his deputy, Bala James Ngillari.

The feeling among most party supporters in the state was that some of the men on the president’s campaign team, such as Messrs Zwingina, Tukur and Adamu are seen to be against the governor’s return to the government house. The suspicion briefly came to the fore when Mr Zwingina, for some reasons, failed to follow in the precedence set by members of the campaign train introduced by Mr Gulak.

He refused to heed the call of “Adamawa sai, ” with the expected “Adamawa Sai Nyako” and Mr Nyako’s supporters protested with an uproar, halting proceedings for a while before law enforcement agents were quickly drafted into the hall.

Mr Gulak, who is also from the state, appealed for restraint from the supporters.

“Our Governor is here, the speaker of the state is here, the state commissioners are here. Why can’t we respect our leaders,” he said.

Two-way loyalty

The PDP state chairman, Mijinyawa Kugama, pointedly told the president’s men they can take his words to the bank that the state chapter of the party was 100% in support of the Goodluck Sambo presidency. He added that in the whole North East, it was only in Adamawa that the support for Mr Jonathan is overwhelming and warned against the presidency taking any actions that could destroy the party in state.

Mr Tafida, who was in Taraba before visiting Adamawa said,

“Adamawa and Taraba have consistently been PDP states and there’s no killing PDP in these states.”

Another member, Abdulrahman Jimata, said support for Mr Jonathan depends on the presidency’s support for Mr Nyako. “There would be no single vote for Jonathan if Nyako was not returned,” he said.

The statement was received with a loud applause.

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