North East people's security more important than elections - Shekarau

A former Governor of Kano State, Ibrahim Shekarau, on Thursday urged all stakeholders to thoroughly assess the security situation in the North-East before deciding whether to conduct the 2015 elections in the troubled states in the geo-political zone or not.

He said security of lives was more important than any election.

Shekarau, who recently defected from the All Progressives Congress to the Peoples Democratic Party, spoke with State House correspondents shortly after a meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said, “As a democrat, I always insist that let there be elections to allow people to decide their fate, but this does not necessarily mean we should conduct elections under a volatile situation.

“If there are threats to lives, who are you going to govern, even if you win the election?

So, it is not safe and I don’t see anybody spitting fire on it. The truth is that let the state governors, the Federal Government, and all concerned join hands together and assess the situation.

“What will the Federal Government gain or INEC gain if they don’t conduct elections  in any state? But if it is in the interest of the public, the life and security of the people is far more important than any election that you can think of.”

Shekarau boasted that despite the recent defection of the incumbent Kano State Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, to the APC, the PDP was still in charge in the state.

He said the next elections would show clearly if the state belonged to the PDP or not.

“Politics is about people and it is an open thing. You don’t play politics in the backyard or in the bedroom. People will see and it is not just getting the crowd but the day we are voting, people will know whether Kano is for the PDP or any other party.

“So, I want to say with all sense of humility that I was in APC and I have moved away with my supporters to the PDP. As for the APC, in Kano, the governor is APC,  his government is APC, there will always be pockets of other parties.

“If you go to Kano, you will discover that every other parties will have its shares. Definitely the PDP is on the grounds, we are in charge in Kano,” he added.

Meanwhile, Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State on Thursday urged the Federal Government to investigate the composition of the chemicals used on Tiv farmers by the  herdsmen in the ongoing crisis.

Suswam said this when he received the Senate Joint Committee on National Security, Intelligence, Defence, Police and Interior.

The joint committee was in the state on a fact finding mission on the Tiv/Fulani crisis in Makurdi.

“We need to assure Nigerians and the international community that the chemicals are not weapons of mass destruction and also to know exactly the kind of danger we are likely to face if they are chemical weapons,” he said.