Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, has commended the peaceful and orderly conduct of the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election for the House of Representatives across the state.
Governor Zulum made the remark on Saturday while addressing journalists shortly after supervising the APC primary election for the Gubio, Kaga and Magumeri Federal Constituency held in Magumeri town.
Hundreds of APC supporters from the three local government areas attended the exercise and welcomed the governor alongside other party officials overseeing the primary election.
Speaking at the venue, Zulum said the exercise was conducted in accordance with the Electoral Act 2026 and the constitution of the APC, which permits consensus arrangements among aspirants.
“We are here to witness the primary election in line with the Electoral Act 2026 and the APC constitution, which allows for consensus arrangements among aspirants,” the governor stated.
He explained that although three aspirants initially showed interest in contesting for the House of Representatives ticket, two later stepped down in support of the incumbent lawmaker, Hon. Usman Zannah.
“We have three contestants vying for the position of the House of Representatives, but fortunately, under the consensus arrangement as enshrined in the constitution of our party, the All Progressives Congress, two of the aspirants stepped down for the incumbent member, Hon. Usman Zannah,” he said.
Zulum added that party members and residents of the three local government areas had affirmed their support for the consensus candidate.
The governor congratulated Hon. Zannah on his emergence and praised the aspirants who stepped down, Hon. Shettima Shehu and Alhaji Mohammed Sanda Ngamdu, for demonstrating party unity and political maturity.
“I want to extend my congratulations to the candidate and the others who stepped down for him,” Zulum said. “I also want to express my appreciation to all APC supporters and the people of Borno State for ensuring a peaceful voting process.”
He further clarified that the APC consensus arrangement was voluntary and did not prevent any aspirant from participating in the primary election process.
“Under the consensus arrangement, the government of Borno State and the party have never taken a decision to stop anybody from contesting,” he explained. “Consensus is a voluntary option, and anybody who does not wish to go for a consensus election has the right to participate in a direct primary.”
Chairman of the APC Primary Elections Committee for Gubio, Kaga and Magumeri Federal Constituency, Hon. Yuguda Saleh Vungas, confirmed that party stakeholders unanimously adopted the consensus option for the primary election.
He also commended Governor Zulum for providing an enabling environment that ensured the peaceful and smooth conduct of the exercise.
Through a voice vote, APC members from the three local government areas unanimously affirmed Hon. Usman Zannah as the party’s consensus candidate for the constituency.
The primary election was attended by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and APC representatives from the party’s national headquarters.
Governor Zulum was accompanied to the exercise by the APC consensus gubernatorial candidate, Engr. Mustapha Gubio; Secretary to the State Government, Bukar Tijani; and the Acting Chief of Staff, Dr. Babagana Mustapha Mallumbe.