By JOSHUA ODEYEMI, Abuja and SHEHU UMAR, Gusau

Zamfara State Governor, Bello Muhammad Matawalle, will “most likely” defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) soon.

A former governor of the state, Senator Ahmed Sani Yarima disclosed this during an interview with Daily Trust at his Abuja residence.

When asked if there was any plan by Matawalle, who became governor on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to decamp to APC, Yarima said: “Most likely, yes.” Meanwhile the governor has said he has no plan of leaving the PDP.

Between 1999 and 2003, Matawalle served as Zamfara State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Commissioner for Environment, Rural Development and then Commissioner for Youth and Sports.

All under Yarima as the governor of the state.

“You will not be surprised if he moves,” he added.

“Yes, we are working and we are talking. Every politician tries to get more people to their party especially governors. If I can have governors with me, the party will be better off.”

When asked if he was sure about the governor’s plan to decamp, Yarima said “I think we have gone very far [with the process of his decamping], adding that he will decamp “very soon.” Despite this assurance from Yarima, APC foot soldiers in the state are currently decamping to the governor’s party.

But the three-term senator said: “This is politics. You would not understand what is happening. He will not just move in and not know who is with him. But now, if they move and he moves with them, they are his foot soldiers.

Every politician wants to be sure that this man or this politician is with him or her.”

The Special Adviser to governor Matawalle on Public Enlightenment, Media and Communication, Zailani Bappa said people are just speculating about the possible defection of his boss to APC but there is no plan to such effect.

“I can tell you that there is nothing like defecting to APC by his Excellency, governor Bello Muhammad Matawalle.

He is busy attending to serious administrative issues. This is just a distraction” “And we should understand that we cannot stop people from expressing their opinion. Even if there is anything like that, it will be made public, but governor Bello Muhammad Matawalle hasn’t expressed any interest to decamp to APC,” Bappa added.

Matawalle was elected into the House of Representatives by his constituents Bakura/Maradun in May 2003 on the platform of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP).

Matawalle was re-elected in 2007 still on the platform of the ANPP only to defect to PDP on which platform he was re-elected for a third term in 2011.

Matawalle polled 189,452 in the March, 2019 poll as against the 534,541 votes of Muktar Idris, the APC candidate.

Muktar Idris was at first, issued the certificate of return, however, the Court of Appeal in Sokoto ordered that INEC should withdraw the certificate, faulting the primary election that produced Idris as the candidate of the APC.

The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Appeal Court and declared as wasted the votes cast for the APC in the election. The Apex Court ordered that the candidate with the second highest votes be sworn in. (Daily Trust)