Goje faults expulsion by Gombe APC
Chima Azubuike, Gombe
A former governor of Gombe State, Danjuma Goje, has faulted his expulsion by the Kashere ward of the All Progressives Congress over allegations of anti-party activities.
The PERISCOPE NIGERIA reported that the ward APC, led by its chairman, Tanimu Abdullahi, on April 18 announced Goje’s expulsion from the party, saying the decision followed investigation of allegation of anti-party activities levelled against the former governor.
Abdullahi, reading the resolution of a 27-member executive of the ward, listed some of Goje’s alleged anti-party activities as “open support for opposition party candidates by hosting the NNPP gubernatorial candidate and the PDP Akko Federal House of Representatives candidate at his residence and offering support against the interest of his party, the APC, among many other instances.
“Making unguarded utterances and pronouncements capable of undermining the APC administration in Gombe State.”
But addressing journalists on Tuesday in Gombe, Goje’s special assistant, Saidu Kumo, questioned the legality of his principal’s expusion, on the grounds that the matter was a subject of pending litigation in court when the ward executives announced Goje’s expulsion.
Kumo said, “The case has been in court before the purported act that took place in Kashere. There was a court order and the party at ward level were served on the 16th and 17th April, 2023 to stay action in order for the court to hear the complaints of the respondent at the Federal High Court Abuja but they went ahead to do the purported act.
“As lawyers, we have been trained not to say anything when a case is in court of law because we are operating constitutional democracy in Nigeria. You can’t do anything that contradicts the power of court and think you will succeed.”
Asked whether the expulsion by the ward executives was null and void, he added, “That’s what we want to hear from the court. Saying it is null and void is like we are passing a verdict; we can’t say anything now.
“What we know is that Senator Goje is a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and he is the senator-elect for Gombe Central Senatorial District under the APC.”
But Legal Adviser of the APC in Yalmatu Deba, Abdullahi Waziri, on Tuesday, justified Goje’s expulsion, saying its was the best option following Goje’s alleged failure to honour the invitation by a five-man committee set up to probe the allegations against him.
“The party was left with no option but to take drastic measure even in his absence. We believe what they have done is what was expected of them by the party,” Waziri said.
