A coalition of socio-political groups in Adamawa State has vowed to resist the imposition of a governorship candidate ahead of party primaries, even as it resolved to work with Governor Ahmadu Fintiri in producing the next governor of the state.
The coalition, comprising the Gongola Peoples’ Forum (GPF), Adamawa United Forum (AUF) and other allied groups, insisted that indigenous ethnic nationalities in the state would no longer “play second fiddle” in determining political leadership.
Speaking through the Mobilisation Secretary of GPF, Mr. Ibrahim Bebeto, the National Chairman of the forum, Markus Gundiri, said democracy thrives when the majority have their way, while the minority are allowed their say.
He maintained that the state was undergoing a political reawakening, warning that attempts to impose candidates based on what he described as “old oligarchic legacies” would no longer be tolerated.
Gundiri said the coalition speaks for over 85 ethnic nationalities in the state, stressing that lessons from the 2023 governorship election, which he alleged involved attempts to impose a candidate, had strengthened their resolve.
“It has become necessary to sound the warning that in Adamawa State, there is no room for imposition in the name of the will of God. The will of the people is actually the will of God, not the reverse,” he said.
He argued that consensus arrangements within political parties should not be mistaken for the collective will of the people, noting that any aspirant relying on such mechanisms to clinch power was “living in the past.”
“If consensus in a political party were to be taken as the will of the people, the coup against Governor Fintiri and democracy in 2023 would have succeeded. But because the people rejected it, it failed,” Gundiri added.
The coalition urged Governor Fintiri to remain steadfast in defending the mandate of the people and to relay their position to President Bola Tinubu.
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“We are pleading with our governor to take this message to the president that the indigenous people of Adamawa State are solidly behind him, but will not accept the imposition of a candidate who is not from the indigenous ethnic nationalities,” he said.
Gundiri further stated that democracy should not be driven by wealth, influence or elite arrangements, but by the popular will of the electorate.
He added that members of the coalition were fully mobilised and ready to support both Governor Fintiri and President Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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