Heavy security at Bauchi APC office as seven aspirants contest guber primary

Heavy security was deployed at the Bauchi State Secretariat of the All Progressives Congress on Thursday as seven aspirants prepared to participate in the party’s governorship primary election ahead of the 2027 polls, as two contenders withdrew from the race under contrasting circumstances.

Our correspondent, who monitored the situation at the APC office in Bauchi, observed a strong presence of security operatives stationed around the premises as the exercise got underway.

The seven aspirants expected to contest in the primary are former Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited official, Dr. Bala Wunti; former Governor of Bauchi State, Mohammed Abubakar (SAN); Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar; former Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Yakubu Abdullahi; former aide to the Bauchi State Governor, Kabiru Babama’aji; former Minority Leader of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, Baba Abubakar; and former Bauchi State Commissioner for Finance, Nura Soro.

Two aspirants, however, did not make it to the exercise.

Sunusi Magaji, PhD, reportedly stepped down in support of Mohammed Abubakar, while the Senator representing Bauchi South Senatorial District, Shehu Buba, withdrew from the race, citing alleged breaches of constitutional provisions in the conduct of the party’s primaries.

Less than 24 hours before the primary, a coalition of political support groups loyal to Dr. Bala Wunti expressed confidence in the process and urged APC members to back their candidate.

Speaking on behalf of the coalition, the Chief Executive Officer of the Bala Wunti Support Organisation, Mukhtar Jarmajo, presented Wunti as the aspirant best positioned to unite the party and provide purposeful leadership for the state, describing the APC primary as a defining moment for the future of Bauchi.

He urged APC members to support what he described as “a tested leader with competence, compassion, and grassroots acceptance,” adding that the group had confidence in the process despite the controversies surrounding the exercise.

“We have confidence in the President and the leadership of the party at the national and state levels,” Jarmajo said.

On their electoral strategy, he was deliberately guarded. “We have our strategy to win the primary election, but we cannot make it public,” he added.