Tanko Sabo, a national delegate of the Peoples Democratic Party from Kaduna State, stated that he donated over N12 million he received from the party’s presidential primary to the less fortunate in the Sanga Local Government Area of Kaduna.
Sabo stated in a Thursday morning interview that he had no fear of being pursued by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and that he had “satisfied my conscience and made all my people happy.”
According to him, he promised his constituents that, if elected as a delegate, he would return any monetary benefits he received at the PDP primary.
Sabo also refused to divulge the names of the aspirants who gave him such monies but he tersely said, “They are many.”
When asked about the aspirant he eventually voted for, Sabo said, “It is personal.”
On how the money was disbursed, the delegate said he paid N6.9 million as “WAEC and NECO examination fees for 150 orphans and the underprivileged” and added that he gave N100,000 as logistics to the five-man committee set up to go round the schools and pay the examination fees because “implementation is important”.
He added that N3.2 million was spent on the purchase of 42 customised jerseys to promote sports among the youths in the area.
Sabo said PDP executives in the 11 wards in his local government got N1.3 million from his largesse while N350,000 went to the elderly.
The PDP delegate has been trending on social media with many commending his action and describing him as a “delegate with a difference”.
Newsclickng.com had earlier reported that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar won the primary on Saturday night. He defeated close rivals like Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike; former Senate President, Bukola Saraki; amongst others.
One of the aspirants, Sam Ohuabunwa, had alleged that delegates could not resist the $10,000, $15,000 and $20,000 offered them by the ‘four leading contestants’, during the party’s presidential special convention in Abuja.
Former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, had left the party and quit the contest for reasons he said didn’t align with his principles. Also, another aspirant, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, quit the contest over “obscene monetisation” allegation.
EFCC operatives had stormed the venue of the primary on Saturday but no one was apprehended.