The All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party, on Sunday, expressed confidence in winning the 2027 governorship election in Plateau State.
The two parties expressed confidence in separate interviews with The PUNCH in Jos, the state capital, as Governor Caleb Mutfwang and 16 other candidates made the final list released by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
INEC released the final list on Saturday, with 17 candidates cleared to contest the Plateau governorship poll.
They include the incumbent governor and APC candidate Mutfwang, Ropshik Wungak of the Peoples Democratic Party, Umaru Yakubu of the Accord Party, Ayuba Pangk of the African Action Congress, Akuns Jonathan Sunday of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Sura Sunday of the African Democratic Congress, Bingel Philomina of Zenith Labour Party, who is the only female governorship candidate on the list, among other candidates.
Reacting to the list in an interview with The PUNCH in Jos on Sunday, the PDP State Publicity Secretary, Dr Choji Dalyop, said the PDP remains the party to beat despite the omission of one of its aspirants, Sunday Biggs, from the INEC list.
Dalyop said, “First, I want you to know that Mr Sunday Biggs, whose name is missing on the INEC list, is the candidate of the PDP in Plateau. The matter is still in court, and we believe justice will be done because the Turaki group remains the authentic PDP that we have.
“Again, you know the Plateau is PDP, and PDP is Plateau State. So, the party is on the ground in Plateau State. Forget the new appointment being done by the government in power with the intention to deceive the people; it will not work. The people of Plateau State are wiser, and when the time for election comes, they will surely vote for the PDP. So, I have no doubt that the candidate of the PDP will win the governorship of Plateau State come 2027.”
On his part, the State Chairman of the APC, Rufus Bature, assured that the APC will retain the state with Mutfwang as its candidate.
Bature said, “Our governorship candidate in Plateau State is Governor Caleb Mutfwang. If you look at the list of governorship candidates in Plateau State released by INEC, you will discover that Mutfwang has no match in the coming election. His service to the people in the past three years will speak for him because the people are happy with what he has achieved. So, the APC is solidly on the ground and will surely win the next election in Plateau.”