The Kaduna State Government has rejected allegations by a coalition of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Social Democratic Party (SDP) that it is plotting to undermine Saturday’s by-elections in Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency and state constituencies in Zaria and Sabon-Gari.
The coalition, led by ADC National Vice Chairman (North West) Jafaru Sani, claimed during a Thursday, August 14, news conference, attended by former governor Nasir El-Rufai, that the ruling APC in Kaduna was recruiting thugs, bribing electoral officials, and planning large-scale vote buying.
They further alleged that senior INEC officials were being offered plots of land as inducements, while a “disgraced former senator” was tasked with distributing the funds to compromise security and influence voters.
The coalition urged INEC to replace what it described as compromised personnel and called on security agencies to remain neutral.
Responding at a separate briefing, the state’s Commissioner of Information designate, Ahmed Maiyaki, dismissed the claims as “baseless” and “mischievous,” saying they were “nothing more than the antics of political leftovers from El-Rufai’s era.”
According to him, the opposition was attempting to discredit an election “they know they cannot win.”
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He pointed to what he called the ADC SDP’s “poorly attended rallies” as evidence of waning public support, adding that their allegations were “a face saving tactic ahead of certain defeat.”
Maiyaki stressed that the conduct of elections rests solely with INEC, not the state government.
He warned that government lawyers had been directed to review the allegations for possible legal action.
“The governor is currently in Chikun LGA commissioning the Romi Karatudu Township roads, a community abandoned and demolished during El-Rufai’s eight years,” he remarked.
He added that Governor Uba Sani’s inclusive leadership had brought unity and tangible development to the state.
He urged voters to turn out in large numbers on Saturday, advising them to ignore “the rantings of political jobbers” and insisting that “democracy in Kaduna is alive and thriving.”