Faction suspends Bauchi APM chairman as defection row deepens

A faction of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in Bauchi State says it has suspended the party's state chairman, Auwal Isah, and appointed Hon. Nasiru Nuru Marafa to lead the chapter in the interim.

The group announced the move at a press conference in Bauchi on Wednesday, led by the party's state secretary, Mohammed Nasir Yahaya. It said the decision followed an emergency meeting of executives.

Yahaya alleged that Isah breached the party's constitution and lost the confidence of members. The allegations include poor financial accountability, weak record-keeping, failure to run an official party bank account and what the faction called unconstitutional handling of party affairs.

Isah has led the APM in Bauchi since 2018, according to the faction. The sources did not say whether he has responded to the allegations.

Why the row matters

The dispute is tied to the recent defection of Governor Bala Mohammed and other government officials to the APM. Yahaya alleged that after the governor joined, Isah changed the names on the state executive list to bring in people who were not original party members.

He said those brought in were loyalists of the state government and members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who moved with the governor.

Yahaya also alleged that the governor's camp asked for 70 per cent of the party's leadership positions, leaving original members with 30 per cent. He said a committee was set up to harmonise the interests but sat for only four days before its work was suspended indefinitely.

According to him, the faction wrote to the APM's national leadership and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to say it was not aware of any properly convened stakeholders' meeting. It also informed both bodies of the suspension, he said.

Yahaya said the group raised its concerns with Governor Mohammed, who assured them the matter would be settled amicably and urged members to keep the peace.

The takeover is not accepted by everyone. The party's factional publicity secretary, Abdulshakur Danlami Mohammed, disputed Yahaya's claim to the secretary position, saying he is not the recognised secretary. He did not deny that the aggrieved officials are APM members, and said the party would issue an official response.

For ordinary Bauchi residents, the fight is about who controls the party machinery in the state ahead of future elections. Party structures decide candidates, and control of those structures can shape who appears on the ballot.

What happens next

The matter now rests with the APM's national leadership and INEC, which the faction says have been notified. The party's official position is still awaited, and it is not yet clear which side the national body will recognise.