Gombe guber: MURIC demands reinstatement of Pantami as PDP flagbearer

Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has demanded the immediate reinstatement of Professor Isa Ali Pantami as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Gombe, accusing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of religious discrimination over his exclusion from the list of candidates for the 2027 election.

MURIC also passed a vote of no confidence in the INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, and called on President Bola Tinubu to replace him, alleging that the commission’s action against Pantami was motivated by religious bias.

MURIC’s Founder and Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, made the demands at a press conference held at the organisation’s headquarters in Lagos on Tuesday.

Pantami, a former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, emerged as the PDP’s governorship candidate following a fresh primary election conducted on September 29, after a Federal High Court nullified his initial emergence and ordered a repeat exercise.

He polled 2,054 votes to defeat Khamisu Mailantarki, who scored 389 votes, and Aliyu Garry, who received 112 votes.

However, INEC omitted his name from its final list of candidates for the February 6, 2027, governorship election in Gombe State.

Akintola described the omission as unjust and unlawful, arguing that the commission should recognise the outcome of the fresh primary conducted in compliance with the court’s directive.

He questioned why INEC would exclude Pantami after monitoring the exercise, insisting that the commission’s participation in the process should have established its legitimacy.

“INEC’s omission of Pantami’s name is therefore illegal, illegitimate, unlawful and unconstitutional,” he said.

The MURIC director alleged that the commission’s action raised concerns about the treatment of Muslim candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He accused Amupitan of harbouring anti-Muslim sentiments, citing controversies surrounding an alleged legal brief on religious persecution in Nigeria, which he claimed had contributed to the United States’ designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern.

Akintola cited the emergence of Christian clerics as governors in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Benue and Taraba states, arguing that Muslim scholars should enjoy the same opportunity to contest and hold political office.

He said the organisation was non-partisan and concerned primarily with protecting the rights of Muslim candidates and voters, irrespective of their political affiliations.

The MURIC chief called on Tinubu to appoint a replacement for Amupitan, arguing that the country had qualified individuals capable of heading the electoral commission without religious prejudice.

He also demanded that INEC immediately restore Pantami’s name to the list of governorship candidates in Gombe State.

Meanwhile, INEC has explained that Pantami’s exclusion, alongside that of the PDP’s governorship candidate in Ogun State, Ladi Adebutu, resulted from the party’s alleged failure to comply with statutory requirements concerning the submission of its membership register.