Pantami not barred from contesting, says Gombe PDP chieftain
Junaidu Abubakar, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe State, has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters to read the recent court judgment nullifying Isa Pantami’s emergence as the party’s governorship candidate.
Abubakar, a former senior special assistant to ex-Gombe Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo, spoke while reacting to what he described as celebrations by APC supporters following the judgment.
A Federal High Court sitting in Gombe, in a judgment delivered on Thursday by Justice Amina Mohammed, nullified Pantami’s emergence as the PDP candidate for the 2027 governorship election and ordered the party to conduct a fresh primary in line with its constitution, guidelines and relevant electoral laws.
The judgment followed a suit filed by Usman Garry, a PDP governorship aspirant, who challenged the process through which Pantami emerged as the party’s candidate. Pantami had emerged through voice affirmation at the party’s primary in May after withdrawing from the APC primary.
Abubakar said the judgment did not permanently bar Pantami from contesting, adding that the former minister remained committed to participating in the fresh primary ordered by the court.
“I am still surprised that APC fans are on Facebook writing that Pantami is barred from contesting the governorship in Gombe State. Does it mean they don’t read newspapers or listen to the judgment very well?” he said.
He also questioned the interpretation of the membership requirement under Section 77 of the Electoral Act, saying the law referred to 21 days before the date fixed for a particular primary rather than a specific May 10, 2026 cut-off date.
“The law does not say ‘10 May 2026’ in Section 77. It says 21 days before the date fixed for the particular primary. That distinction is extremely important,” Abubakar said.
