The Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, suffered a setback in Bauchi state when his campaign director, Alhaji Alhassan Bawu, left the party.
On Tuesday, Peter Obi’s campaign director in Bauchi admitted that the Labour Party lacks a structure in the state to win any type of election.
As a result, Bawu defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which is widely regarded as the main rival of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The former LP chieftain defected from Obi’s party to the PDP, along with some Labour Party officials from the Northeast.
Bawu told reporters earlier today that all LP chairmen, state and zonal officers, as well as national officers from the region, had defected to the PDP to support Atiku Abubakar’s candidacy.
He added;
The LP is not strong and won’t be able to win a single seat in the region.
We don’t want to waste our votes and we want to use this time to mobilize votes to who can win the election.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has urged security forces to provide basic security to ensure a peaceful general election.
During a stakeholders meeting in Bauchi on Tuesday, Alhaji Mohammed Nura, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Bauchi State, made this call.
He stated that the Inter-agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) should work around the clock to ensure a safe and peaceful election.
Nura believes that maintaining peace and security is essential for the country to hold free and fair elections.
We hope that as part of this effort, relevant security agencies will arrest, investigate and prosecute sponsors and perpetrators of violence and other electoral offenses, he said.
For voters to feel safe to come out en masse to vote for the candidates of their choice as we assure that their votes will count.
We are appealing to critical stakeholders such as traditional and religious leaders, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), and the media to sensitize the youth against violence to conduct peaceful elections.