By Our Correspondent
The Kaduna State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dismissed allegations that the N25.9 million confiscated from one of its members during Saturday’s by-election was intended for vote buying, insisting the funds were strictly meant for the welfare and logistics of over 5,000 party agents deployed across three constituencies.
On Saturday, police operatives arrested one Shehu Aliyu Patangi at a hotel along Turunku Road in Kaduna metropolis, reportedly in possession of ₦25,963,000. Security sources immediately linked the discovery to an alleged attempt to influence voters.
However, addressing a press conference on Saturday, PDP State Chairman, Edward Masha, strongly refuted the claim, describing it as “mischievous and an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians.”
According to him, the party mobilised more than 6,000 polling agents, supervisors, and collation officers across Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency, Basawa State Constituency, and Zaria/Kewaye State Constituency where the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) conducted the by-elections.
“We have 169 polling units in those constituencies. Even if you pay each agent as little as ₦3,000, the total figure will be well above ₦30 million. That is the reality. To now claim that the ₦25.9m was earmarked for vote buying is simply not true. The money was for logistics and welfare,” Masha insisted.
He further alleged that PDP has become a consistent target of intimidation by state institutions, accusing the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of “weaponising security agencies” against the opposition.
Masha also recounted how, a day before the election, security operatives allegedly stormed the campaign council office of Esther Ashivelli Dawaki, the PDP candidate for the Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency. According to him, the raid led to the arrest of key party officials, including the state publicity secretary, zonal chairman, youth leader, women leaders, and more than 18 others, who were whisked away without explanation.
“This calculated harassment is part of APC’s desperation to silence the opposition and manipulate the electoral process,” the PDP chairman alleged.
The controversy has since stirred debate within Kaduna’s political space, coming at a time when opposition parties nationwide continue to accuse the APC-led federal and state governments of shrinking the democratic space through arrests, intimidation, and the misuse of security agencies.
