Nahum Sule, Jalingo
The Taraba state Social Democratic Party gubernatorial candidate Danladi Baido alleged that the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Taraba received N50 million naira as a gratification to endorse the PDP candidate.
Speaking during a press conference in Jalingo on Wednesday, the coalition of the three gubernatorial candidates in the State Senator Emmanuel Bwacha of the APC, Danladi Baido of the SDP and Joel Ikenya of LP have collectively chastised the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Taraba chapter for endorsing the PDP candidate Kefas Agbu.
According to Baido he said “I’m disappointed in CAN, we’re all disappointed in CAN. CAN collected 50M from Kefas to endorse him. Nobody is going to play pranks on us again. If the three of us seat down and curse them, it won’t be easy for them. The PDP candidate is not grounded in Taraba politics, he can’t even mention 5 wards in his local government”.
“Among the three of us we are all grounded in Taraba politics, whoever emerges as the candidate among us is the best for the state. We want somebody that is a true Taraba not someone that we come and rule and go” he said.
Also speaking the APC governorship candidate, Senator Bwacha noted that the statement by CAN to that effect only tends to divide the church describing the State Chairman of CAN Magaji Jirape as an employee of the Taraba State Government.
He advised Tarabans to discontenance with such shenanigans saying that “most of the Pastors and Malams are involved in dubious acts and what they tell people is not what they do”.
Defining his position, the Governorship candidate of the Labor Party Senator Joel Ikenya portrayed Taraba CAN as a Parastatal of the State Government noting that the people of Taraba State are more divided than ever before.
Senator Ikenya said he is ashamed that CAN in Taraba State has gone out of the way in identifying with the State Government that has not commissioned any project, pensioners in disaray and nothing is moving well.
According to him, “We want Taraba State to be ruled by a good person not to be remote controlled we are for everybody and the people have the right to chose anybody we are committed to the people of Taraba State and determined to rescue the rescuer.
“We are matured and we don’t know of any endorsement let the people chose the candidate of their choice”.
He further accused CAN of being a political institution controlled by the state government to do their bidding.
