Gombe PDP, APC trade words over attack on Pantami’s campaign office

The reported vandalism of the campaign office of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, in Kumo, Akko Local Government Area of Gombe State, has triggered accusations and counter-accusations between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The office was reportedly vandalised around 2am on Saturday amid rising political tension ahead of the 2027 governorship election.

A political ally of Pantami, Muhammad City Kumo, alleged that the Chairman of Akko Local Government Area, Abubakar Usman Barambu, had threatened to send thugs to destroy the office before the incident occurred.

City claimed that Barambu called him and said the alleged action was linked to Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya’s opposition to opposition billboards.

He also alleged that the governor might have been aware of the plan but provided no independent evidence to substantiate the claims against either the chairman or the governor.

City urged Governor Yahaya to caution the Akko council chairman against any conduct capable of undermining peaceful political competition in the state.

He argued that opposition parties were essential to democratic politics, saying political officeholders also benefited from a competitive political environment.

But the APC Publicity Secretary, Murtala Usman Wurotale, said the party was unaware of the attack and challenged the opposition to provide evidence linking its members to the vandalism.

Wurotale also alleged that the PDP might have staged the incident to attract public sympathy following its loss of the party’s governorship ticket.

However, the PDP Publicity Secretary, Abdulkadir Ahmad Dukku, told Daily Trust that the party was not present when the attack occurred and that the allegations against the APC had yet to be established.

Dukku said the party would consult its lawyers before deciding on further action.

He also called on security agencies to investigate the incident and identify those responsible.

Efforts to obtain Barambu’s reaction to the allegations were unsuccessful, as he neither answered telephone calls nor returned them.

The governor had also yet to publicly comment on the incident as of the time of filing this report.

But the police spokesperson in the state, DSP Buhari Abdullahi, said the police were aware of the attack and would investigate the incident, adding that anyone found culpable would face the full wrath of the law.