[Mhiz Rebecca]

A few months after the defection of a former
governorship candidate, Ibrahim El-Amin, to the
Peoples Democratic Party in Kano, a former member of
the House of Representatives, Bala Baiko, has followed
his footsteps out of the ruling All Progressives
Congress in the state.
Mr. Baiko, who was elected to the House of
Representatives in 2003 under the defunct All Peoples
Party, told journalists while decamping that members
of the All Nigerian Peoples Party had beensidelined
since their party joined other legacy parties to form the
APC.
He noted that Mr. El-Amin, popularly called Little, and
former Vice President Atiku Abubakar had complained
of neglect in the APC, saying his numerous followers
were similarly not carried along in the scheme of things
in Kano.
Mr. Baiko said he and his followers were only
remembered during elections after which they have
been cast aside by those in government.
“As everyone knows, party politics is all about making
members feel he belongs by including them in active
governance, but in our case, no one remembers us
after we helped in bringing the government and what
do you think we will be doing in this kind of party?”
Mr. Baiko said he and his over 20,000 supporters
across Kano were defecting to help the PDP win all the
forthcoming elections in the state, including the
governorship.
He said he was going back to the PDP to join old
political allies with whom he had worked together in the
past, saying it would be easy for him to blend in the
party.
Mr. Baiko said former Vice President Abubakar was also
going back to the PDP, claiming all the plans had been
concluded.
Mr. Abubakar, although complained of not being carried
along by the current APC administration, has not said
he plans to leave the party for the PDP.