Rival declarations name different winners in Zamfara North APC primary

Rival result declarations have emerged from Monday’s APC primary for Zamfara North Senatorial District, with separate announcements naming incumbent Senator Sahabi Ya’u and former senator Tijjani Yahaya Kaura as winners.

Channels Television reported that the primary committee chairman, Auwal Abdullahi Aliyu, declared Ya’u the winner in Gusau, Zamfara State, on Monday.

The conflicting announcements leave the party’s nomination unsettled in the published accounts. The rerun followed a Court of Appeal decision upholding the nullification of the earlier primary.

Ya’u received 49,176 votes and Kaura 9,628 in the tally reported by Channels and Punch.

The reports give different totals for the third aspirant, Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi: Channels puts him at 2,602 votes, while Punch gives 6,206.

Leadership reported a different declaration by returning officer Sani Abdullahi, naming Kaura the winner. That result gave Kaura 16,758 votes, Ya’u 1,465 and Shinkafi 1,447. Channels also reported this competing result.

Voting was disrupted at Namoda Model Primary School and a polling unit near the Emir’s Palace in Kaura Namoda, Daily Trust reported from the area. The newspaper said attackers damaged the vehicle of council chairman Mannir Muhammad Haidara, while voters fled the polling centres.

The reports do not establish which declaration the APC’s national leadership recognises.

Sources: Channels Television; Leadership; Daily Trust; Punch