Suleiman Hunkuyi, Senator representing Kaduna North, has declared his intention to run for the governorship of the state in the 2019 election.

Asked by journalists on Thursday in Kaduna whether he will contest the governorship of the state, Mr. Hunkuyi said: “I’m very likely to do that.”

He expressed doubt on the Bola Tinubu-led committee for resolving crises in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the possibility of its visit to Kaduna, saying: “I don’t know whether they will achieve result; I don’t know, but with due respect, it has not been done before, so to say there is a reconciliation committee tells you there is a conflict.”

The Senator had earlier addressed the factional APC Restoration supporters in Hausa for about an hour on the need to resist the alleged move to impose candidates through consensus in the state.

He said the intention of the gathering was to take quality, effective, good cross section of serious representatives of the communities around our state, to come and consider, review and find the exact position of the state as far as political leadership is concerned.

“We want to put this congregation as the APC Aspirants Platform, and all we want is what the founding fathers of APC had told us at the initial onset of the beginning of the APC; which is transparent election through internal democracy,” Senator Hunkuyi said.

He disclosed that the APC Aspirants Platform would be headed by him.

Senator Hunkuyi said: “It is also to use the medium to say the government abysmally has not been fair to the majority in our state.

“Thirdly, to assess the APC as a platform and a party (before) the congresses that will end on the one part, the leadership of the wards and local governments and to elect new leaders.

“And to bring to light, efforts of this current state government to perpetuate negatively, wrongly, unconstitutionally, by superintending those they want at the helm of affairs.

“Nobody should undermine the rights and powers of the people when it comes to matters of election and, as far as we are concerned and as far as this forum which we started today is concerned, we will put all structures from the state to the ward level together to make sure our followers, the APC followers, can find credible rallying point that they can aspire for whatever office – from councillorship to the governor position in the state.

“Anything less is not negotiable because it will amount to negotiating the instruments of our co-existence in our constitution that warrant and guarantee the provision of right to aspire to whatever office one aspires for.”

When asked the meaning of Thumb Down Revolution as displayed on tags hanged by his supporters, Senator Hunkuyi said: “The thumb, that is the essence of the symbol for democracy. The first is that we have a government and we wish to vote it out, that is the revolution. It is to provide and guarantee the right of every respective voter, be it at the party level or at the general election level to have the right to choose to vote out those of us who have not perform credibly well and to vote in those they feel can guarantee their own rights and aspiration.

“If we fail to act now, definitely we shall regret our inaction in the business of politics in this state.

“Leadership of the state should ensure equal right to all the people of the state irrespective of party affiliation.

“What they are saying they want to use for the World Bank loan of $350 million, which is N120 billion, were actually not what they told people they want to use it for.”

Tijjani Ramalan, Chairman APC Restoration group and owner of Liberty TV/Radio; Adamu Kagarko; Suleiman Hunkuyi; Rabi Abdulrahman l; Bulus James, former Kaduna State Head of Service, were among those who attended the gathering.

•Photo by Garba Ahmed shows Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi addressing the APC Restoration gathering on Thursday

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