By Luka Binniyat

KADUNA — Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, stakeholders in the North-West geo-political zone of the country, yesterday,  insisted on its earlier endorsement of President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice President Namadi Sambo for the 2015 presidency.

The party was reacting to the denial of Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State distancing the state from the party’s resolution in the expanded stakeholders meeting at the late Gen. Hassan Katsina House, Kawo, Kaduna penultimate Sunday.

Chairman of the Communiqué Drafting Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Aminu Wali, in statement in Kaduna said: “Our attention has been drawn to a publication widely circulated in the media purported to have emanated from the Jigawa State Governor challenging the resolution of our expanded stakeholders meeting where he claimed that Jigawa State was not part of the resolution.

“It is against this backdrop that we deemed it necessary to clear the air on this and other sundry issues raised by the deputy governor in his press briefing at his office in Dutse, the capital of Jigawa State.

“Let me firmly and explicitly state that the decision to hold the expanded stakeholders’ meeting was a culmination of several meetings held among the key stakeholders of the zone and Jigawa State was always represented by the deputy governor in such meetings.

“It was also agreed at such fora that each state must first hold its stakeholders meeting before the expanded meeting, which we believe was complied with by each state chapter of the party.

“The outcome of the meetings by the state chapters gave rise to the North-West Zone meeting. The expanded stakeholders resolved to urge President Goodluck Jonathan to contest for the office of the President come 2015. This decision was the position of the majority of the stakeholders present at the meeting, therefore to concretise it.

“Amb. Aminu Wali was directed to read the communique and make it public as prepared and submitted by the party. This accounted for the presence of the governors and deputy governors including that of Jigawa State standing behind Amb. Aminu Wali while he was reading the communiqué to demonstrate their support and endorsement of the outcome of the meeting.

“Therefore, for the deputy governor to return to Jigawa State and to summon a press conference dissociating himself and the Jigawa State Governor from the communiqué is an afterthought and rather very unfortunate.

“We have no atom of idea as to the reason for such denial. We, therefore, find it necessary to put the record straight by confirming that we stand by the contents and outcome of our communiqué.”