The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) elders committee in Gombe State have condemned the demolition of the campaign office of its governorship candidate Muhammed Barde by the state government.
Daylight Reporters reports that the office was demolished on Tuesday by the Gombe State Urban Planning and Development Authority (GOSUPDA) for alleged violation of its regulations.
But the PDP elders committee led by its chairman Bala Magaji who holds the traditional title of ‘Magajin garin Gombe’ in a press conference yesterday said the action of the government was dictatorial and uncivil.
According to him, the same office was utilized by the incumbent governor Inuwa Yahaya for his campaign in 2019 when Barde was in the All Progressives Congress (APC) with the governor.
They therefore alleged that the action of the government was politically motivated claiming that when the PDP ruled the state for 16 years, it allowed opposition to paste their posters and banners everywhere without hindrance.
“It is an act of dictatorship. It is barbaric, uncivil and uncalled for. Government should protect the lives and property of the people rather than destroying their property.
“We urged people in the state to remain calm not to be provoked by the action. PDP will chase out the APC government in 2023 and bring sanity”. He said.
But the state government while reacting to the matter insisted that the campaign office was sited at the Government Reserved Area (GRA) and closer to the presidential lodge which ‘contravened its laws’.
The Executive Chairman of GOSUPDA, Peter Bilal said the demolition exercise became necessary because the building in question not only contravened some sections of the land use act Decree of 1978, urban and regional planning and development board law of 2001 and other development laws of the State but turned into buzzing political arena in a location directly opposite the Presidential Lodge within the Government House vicinity and area clearly marked for residential and Government offices.
