Umaru Fintiri, acting governor of Adamawa state has won the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary. Fintiri was favourite to win the primaries following the exit of Nuhu Ribadu and others from the primaries.

Fintiri won 624 votes, representing  60 per cent of the vote cast by over 878 delegates at the poll conducted by a former Speaker of the House of Representatives,  Dimeji Bankole.

Dr Ahmed Modibbo, the former Universal Basic Education Commission boss, came second with 197 votes followed by former Lagos and Borno military governor, Buba Marwa, who polled 54 votes.

Dr Umar Ardo got nine votes while Jerry Kundisi scored four votes.

Ahmed Gulak: complains and steps down for Fintiri

Bankole said there were 25 invalid votes

 “The power of incumbency worked for Fintiri who had secured the loyalty and support of statutory delegates like local government chairmen, councillors, and other political appointees,” one delegate said.

Another factor for the runaway victory of Fintiri was attributed to the stepping down for Fintiri of  Ahmed Gulak, former Political Adviser to the President Goodluck Jonathan.

The candidate of the All Progressives Congress for the 11 October governorship election is expected to emerge on Sunday.

Earlier, candidates for the PDP primaries had complained about the exercise.

Dr. Umar Ardo, one of the aspirants, complained to the organisers of the exercise in Yola that the way and manner it was being conducted was totally against the party’s interest.

Ardo, who accused the national delegation conducting the election of incompetence, said he had never experienced such manner of conducting polls.

” You are abusing the sanctity of the open ballot box election,”  Ardo told the delegation at the venue of the exercise.

 Gulak, who later stepped down for Fintiri also criticised the delegation for allegedly handling the election in a shoddy manner.

” The way this election  is being conducting is totally strange in the history of our party,” Gulak said.