A controversy has erupted in Jigawa State following conflicting reports about the outcome of the Garki-Babura federal constituency bye-election, specifically concerning the polling unit of the Minister of Defence, Alhaji Muhammad Badaru Abubakar.
While initial reports claimed a loss for the All Progressives Congress (APC) at his polling unit, the minister’s office has vehemently denied the assertion, providing a different set of results.
A news story had reported that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) secured a victory at Polling Unit 001 in Babura Kofar Arewa Primary School, where the minister was said to have cast his vote.
The report stated that the PDP polled 308 votes to the APC’s 112, a significant margin of defeat for the ruling party.
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By-elections were held in three constituencies in Kaduna: Chikun/Kajuru federal constituency, Basawa state constituency, and Zaria/Kewaye state constituency.
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The minister, a former governor of the state and a prominent APC chieftain, reportedly cast his vote amidst tight security and left without speaking to journalists.
However, in a statement released by his media aide, Mati Ali, the minister dismissed these claims as “false and misleading.”
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The statement clarified that Alhaji Muhammad Badaru Abubakar‘s actual polling unit is Polling Unit 002, not 001, at the same Babura Kofar Arewa Primary School.
The minister’s office accused “mischief makers” of circulating fake results to tarnish his image. According to the statement, the authentic results from Polling Unit 002, as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), show a victory for the APC.
The APC reportedly secured 188 votes, while the PDP garnered 164 votes. The minister’s camp reaffirmed that he “emerged victorious” in his polling unit. The statement urged the public and media to disregard the earlier reports and rely only on the official INEC results.
The bye-election in Jigawa was part of a series of re-run and bye-elections conducted by INEC across at least 12 states on Saturday, August 17.
While reports from other locations indicated some instances of apathy, violence, and vote buying, the focus in Jigawa has shifted to this specific dispute over the minister’s polling unit result, highlighting the high stakes and political tension surrounding the electoral process.