“ENOUGH IS ENOUGH”: Pantami Condemns Political Violence, Warns Against State-Sponsored Intimidation In Gombe
The Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] governorship candidate in Gombe State, Professor Sheikh Ali Isa Pantami, has condemned what he described as state-sponsored intimidation, political violence and selective justice targeting opposition supporters across the state.
Speaking during a campaign tour across several communities, Pantami said the ruling party in Gombe State has abandoned governance and now acts like an opposition party, while turning the PDP into a governing party in the eyes of the people.
He said his campaign team has faced coordinated obstruction and attacks. According to him, when the team entered Yelwan Gana, thugs were deployed against them. In Shamaki, they were ordered not to be allowed entry. In Bolari Ta Aziya, he said disrespectful thugs were sent to disrupt the campaign.
The PDP candidate said the situation escalated in Bolari where the party’s Youth Leader in the area, Buhari Sani, was attacked with machetes, sustaining severe injuries to his head and hand. He said Sani was threatened before the attack took place and an attempt was made on his life in the presence of security personnel.
“I was inside the vehicle, but despite security personnel being present on the scene, they attempted to kill the young man, and I declared that we would not allow it. We will not tolerate the loss of a single life,” Pantami said.
He stressed that all residents of Gombe State remain his people regardless of political affiliation. “You are all our children, our younger siblings, our family. Whether someone supports us or opposes us, they are all ours. We will not betray the trust of our people. Even those who do not support us are our children, and we will not betray them,” he said.
Pantami also accused some individuals of being used to perpetrate the attacks as people he had personally helped in the past. He said among those sent against his campaign are people he treats as elder brothers who should conduct themselves with restraint, former students he taught who have now become disrespectful, and people he sponsored through university.
“Those sending them, we know them. Among those they send, there are disrespectful ones. We know them,” he said, adding repeatedly, “Enough is enough! This must stop!”
He further alleged double standards by state authorities in the handling of campaign poster destruction. He said PDP posters were torn down in Dadin Kowa without any action taken, but when PDP supporters were accused of tearing opposition posters, they were ordered to be arrested and detained.
He also cited an incident in Alawanti where young boys who were simply passing by and chanting “Gombe belongs to Sheikh, by God’s grace,” were targeted. Because the boys were minors, he said orders were given to arrest their parents instead.
Pantami also claimed that some civil servants who expressed support for his candidacy, a right guaranteed under freedom of association in the constitution, were dismissed from their jobs.
He said the PDP remains a party of peacemakers and called on the people of Gombe State to judge who truly wants peace and who is instigating chaos. He said opposition posters are pasted even close to his own residence, yet he instructs his supporters never to touch them.
“We prevent retaliation and insist that everyone should be allowed to support whoever they choose. But we will no longer tolerate being continually victimized and harassed,” he said.
He called on security agencies and traditional leaders to ensure close supervision and fair treatment for all parties, saying the PDP has trust and confidence in them but enough is enough.
“We assure you that peace will be maintained and we will continue to abide by the law. But anyone you see instigating violence knows they have already lost. And by God’s grace, their defeat will be fully sealed when the election takes place,” Pantami added.
