The planned defection of Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress has collapsed following disagreements over a proposed power-sharing formula.
The consultations between the governor, his Turaki-led PDP faction, and the APC leadership ended in a deadlock after the ruling party reportedly rejected a 60–40 formula for the control of party structure in Bauchi State.
The governor and his supporters have, however, declared their openness to align with other political parties, noting that plans are underway to consider fresh options for possible defection from the ward to the state level.
Addressing journalists on Saturday, the Chairman of the Turaki-led PDP faction in the state, Sama’ila Burga, said the APC had shown it was not ready to accommodate the PDP structure and the state government.
Burga disclosed that the APC initiated talks through the governor, involving its national leadership and the Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, who visited Bauchi to persuade Mohammed to join the party.
He said the discussions, however, stalled after the APC failed to agree to the 60–40 sharing formula, which he noted had been adopted in similar defections in other states.
“This is how it has been done in other places where governors defected to APC. They rejected this formula and we have closed that discussion. You cannot expect a government bringing its structure from ward level to the state not to have control of the party,” Burga said.
Burga added, “We have called for this press conference at the instance of His Excellency, the Governor, who is leading the discussions.”
Burga further stated that after extensive consultations with stakeholders, the PDP faction resolved to discontinue the talks.
“After careful consideration, it became clear that the conditions collectively advanced for such a political realignment were not accepted by the APC leadership. In light of this, we want to announce that the discussions have not yielded a conclusive outcome and are hereby formally discontinued,” he said.
He noted that the party is now exploring alternative political platforms.
“While we appreciate the outreach and engagement by the APC, we wish to state unequivocally that the process has now been brought to a close. Consequently, the PDP in Bauchi State, in consultation with His Excellency and other critical stakeholders, is actively considering all available political options other than the APC to determine the most suitable path forward in line with the aspirations and best interests of the people of Bauchi State,” he added.