Pantami: PDP Gombe Governorship Aspirant Petitions Against Exclusion From P𝚛𝚒𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚢

The crisis over the selection of Dr Isa Pantami as the Governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe State, is still generating dust thereby refusing to settle down.

This is as one of the Governorship aspirants, Mr. Abdulkadir-Hamma Saleh, has petitioned the party’s Governorship Appeals Panel over what he described as “wrongful exclusion” from the party’s governorship primary election and the sudden imposition of Dr. Isa Pantami as the candidate of the party.

Saleh, in a letter dated May 27, 2026, and addressed to the Chairman of the PDP Governorship Appeals Panel in Gombe, stressed that having being duly screened and cleared by the PDP Screening Committee headed by former Kaduna State Governor, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, to participate in the exercise, he was not allowed to participate in the primary election.

𝚂𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚑 said; “Despite being cleared, I was neither invited nor notified about the conduct of the primary election initially scheduled for May 24, 2026, and later rescheduled to May 26, 2026”.

The petitioner expressed surprise how Isa 𝙿𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚖𝚒 was 𝚍𝚎𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚛 of the PDP 2027 gubernatorial election 𝚋𝚢 the Chairman of the party’s Gombe Electoral Panel, Gregory 𝚈𝚎𝚗𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐.

Saleh further stated in the petition that he only became aware of the exercise through the social media while at his residence in Gombe State.

According to him; “On May 26, 2026, while I was in my house in Gombe State, I saw on social media that Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, was allegedly declared as the sole aspirant, and declared the winner and candidate of the PDP”.

Saleh particularly questioned Pantami’s participation in the PDP primary, having earlier contested in the governorship primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC), where he emerged as the runner-up.

The aspirant therefore appealed to the panel to investigate what he described as “a kangaroo arrangement and caricature of an election”.

Saleh further said; “I hereby appeal to your panel to look into my complaint with a view to addressing the kangaroo arrangement that took place on May 26, 2026, which is a caricature of an election.

“I have the confidence that the Appeals Panel would ensure fairness and justice in resolving this matter,” he stated.