FACT-CHECK: Did Gombe APC Governorship Candidate Jamil Gwamna Tell APC Members To Vote Atiku Abubakar?
A viral video purportedly showing prominent Gombe politician, Dr. Jamil Isyaku Gwamna, urging voters across party lines to support Atiku Abubakar has been found to be authentic but old and misleadingly re-circulated.
The Claim: The video claims to show Dr. Gwamna telling voters that whether they are in APC or PDP, they must support the Waziri of Adamawa, Atiku Abubakar.
The Video:
In the 52-second clip, Gwamna, speaking in Hausa, said:
“Even if you belong to the APC, you must support Atiku — that is final! The candidate from Northern Nigeria will win… For us here in the North-East, our father’s home is the house of the Waziri. Therefore, by God’s grace, he is the one we will support. Whether you are APC or PDP, Waziri is your father.”
He also urged support for other local candidates who stood behind him and won.
The Verdict: MISLEADING CONTEXT
Findings show the video was recorded in late 2022 in the build-up to the 2023 presidential election. At that time, Dr. Jamil Gwamna was a major campaign coordinator in the North-East for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and was actively championing Atiku’s presidential bid.
Dr. Gwamna subsequently resigned from the PDP and defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in December 2022 following internal party friction.
Circulating the clip now without its historical context creates the false impression that APC stakeholders are currently abandoning their party to campaign for Atiku in the current political cycle, which is not the case.
Old Video, New Mischief: Gombe APC Chieftain Jamil Gwamna Denies Campaigning For Atiku, Calls Viral Clip Smear Campaign
Reacting to the clip in an interview, Gwamna confirmed he had seen the video but clarified that it is old and was recorded when he was still in the PDP, long before campaigns for the 2023 elections started.
“Yes, without a doubt, I have seen this video. And that video was from when we were in the PDP, long before elections. At that time, we were in the PDP and supporting Atiku when that was recorded,” Gwamna said.
He explained that following his defection, he returned to the APC and served as the Coordinator of the Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council in Gombe State in 2023, fully supporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“We, the people of the North-East, have nothing but gratitude for the APC. Under the APC and the President, development has been brought to us in various ways — especially the security improvements achieved since the President took office,” he added.
On those circulating the video, the Sardaunan Gombe described it as smear politics and a backward political tactic aimed at tarnishing his image.
“This is politics — specifically, a regrettable form of smear campaign and backward politics. When someone wants to cause harm or tarnish your character, you see them bringing up things like this. But I assure everyone that we are APC through and through, from top to bottom. We fully support President Tinubu. By God’s grace, the APC will triumph in Gombe State,” he said.
Gwamna called on his supporters, members of the APC, supporters of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and the people of Gombe State to remain calm and disregard the video.
“My message is for everyone to remain calm. Social media maneuvers like this are typically brought up whenever people want to achieve a specific agenda. I am calling on all my supporters and lovers of President Tinubu to disregard the video clip. It is only now that they resurfaced this video to fulfill a specific agenda, released entirely out of context. I strongly condemn this type of politics,” he stated.
