By Henry Umoru

ABUJA- FORMER deputy Senate President, Senator Ibrahim Mantu is heading the Screening Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP that will today screen the former Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu who was yesterday granted waiver to participate in the September 6 primary election ahead of the October 11 gubernatorial election in Adamawa State.

Disclosing this to Vanguard yesterday, PDP National Organising Secretary, Alhaji Abubakar Mustapha said that screening Committee is made up of five members.

Also to be screened today are a three time gubernatorial aspirant, Dr. Umar Ardo; Acting Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri; Senator Abubakar Girei; former Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Political Matters, Alhaji Ahmed Gulak; Erstwhile Military Administrator of Lagos and Borno States, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa and former Minister of Statement Foreign Affairs, Dr. Aliyu Idi- Hong.

Others are the immediate Executive Secretary, Universal Basic Education Commission, UBEC, Dr. Ahmed Modibbo Mohammed; Son of former PDP National Chairman, Awwal Bamanga Tukur; Marcus Natina Gundiri; James Shuiabu Barka; Jerry Kundusi; Engr. Brig. Gen. A.A.V. Kana and Andrawus Sawa.

Meanwhile, as the screening Committee screens the aspirants today, a group under the aegis, Concerned youths for good governance in Adamawa state has written to the panel, asking for the disqualification of Acting Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, over allegations that he belongs to the All Progressives Congress, APC and not PDP.

In a statement signed yesterday by Ahmed Ya’uba and made available to Journalists, the group said, “The fulcrum of democracy is observance of law and order and respect of laid down rules and regulations. It is also the basis on which our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) commands a lot of respect and popular acceptance in this country. It is therefore for this that whenever we see the party being misled to act in contempt of its own spelt out rules and regulations, we as loyal members of the party would have to act quickly to abort subversion of the cherished democratic credentials of the PDP.”

The letter which was copied the Chairman, BoT, Chief Tony Anenih and Political Adviser, Prof. Rufai Alkali continued, “It is therefore for this reason that we write to draw the attention of the Screening Committee and other organs of the party’s leadership to the imminent swindling of the party by the acting governor of Adamawa State, AhmaduUmaruFintiri who is legally not qualified to vie for the governorship, or any other position for that matter, being a returnee who has not been granted a waiver.

“Mr. Chairman, the said AhmaduUmaru, like many other officials of the last administration of the state, had decamped from our party, the PDP, and subscribed to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“AhmaduUmaru had actually registered with the APC during its membership drive in February at his KIRSHINGA unit of K/WURO NGAYANDI ward of MADAGALI Local Government, with the following details:NAME: UMORU AHMADU, REG NO: 05009281, TEL: 08058536087, GENDER: MALE, AGE: 44 YRS

“To our knowledge, AhmaduUmaru, having purportedly returned to the PDP, had not applied for waiver to contest for any position, thus he was never granted same by any organ of the party. He has also not returned his APC membership card to his Ward chairman, thus keeping one of his legs in that party. We are also aware that he has entered into a discussion with some APC elements to immediately dust up his membership card if he did not win the scheduled primaries of our party, the PDP.

“By the provisions of Section 16 (2) and Section 16 (4) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as amended, AhmaduUmaru has no right to contest for any position under the party’s platform. It is therefore a misnomer that he is positioning himself as an aspirant for the position of the governor of Adamawa State.

“With these available and verifiable facts, we believe that the committee will do the right thing of disqualifying the said aspirant as he is not in any way qualified to contest for anything under the PDP platform, as at this time.”

But reacting through his Chief Press Secretary, Solomon Kumangar, the acting governor who noted that those raising the allegations were afraid of him, describing the petition as spurious and lacking in substance.

The statement read, “It has come to our attention a faceless group under the aegis of Adamawa concerned Youths has written a petition challenging the right of the Governor to seek the ticket of the PDP in the Oct. 11 Gubernatorial Bye-election for lack of waiver. It is pertinent to state here that the whole idea is not only ridiculous, but completely untenable.

” It is also uncharitable to the man whose doggedness made it possible for the PDP to reclaim its stolen mandate in the first place. We dismiss the petition as spurious and without substance because it is the handiwork of those who are afraid that Fintiri stands firmly between them and the ticket. Fintiri has never been a member of APC because he has always been a member of PDP.