In what appears a political earthquake, 252 special advisers and special assistants appointed by Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State have resigned their appointments, an ex-official said.
The former officials said they returned to the All Progressives Congress (APC), instead of working under a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government.
Ibrahim Haske, a special adviser to the former governor and spokesperson for all the aides, announced this at a news conference in Sokoto on Sunday.
He said their decision followed Governor Tambuwal’s defection from the APC to the opposition PDP.
“Our appointment is based on the position that APC is the political party governing the state and now that the government belongs to PDP, we have no option other than to resign.
“We are bonafide members of APC and our position has always remained same; we therefore resign voluntarily from the PDP government,” Mr Haske said.
Mr Haske, who was a former Sokoto South Local Government Area chairman, further explained the decision was based on their desire to support APC to deliver on its mandate after the 2019 general elections.
Abdullahi Sokoto, also a special adviser to Mr Tambuwal, restated the former aides’ commitment and dedication toward ensuring the success of the APC across the state.
“We will continue to remain in our party APC and as such we sacrifice our political appointments to clarify people’s doubt and show our stand on party supremacy.”
He restated the group’s loyalty and support to the policies and programme of the Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari and the leadership of APC.
In his reaction, the APC Chairman in the state, Sadiq Achida, commended the former aides to Mr Tambuwal for their demonstration of loyalty to the party.
He said, “the sacrifice of the special advisers is highly recommended and will surely be rewarded by the people and APC in future.”
The state government was yet to react to the defections at the time of the report.
