TO the onlooker, it appeared like a joint campaign event of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the leading opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kaduna at the weekend, at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium (ABS). 

  But it was a PDP rally ostensibly infiltrated and hijacked by “APC supporters,” or what as source described as “disgruntled PDP supporters,” who, at a point, drowned the sound of ‘Pee-Dee-Pee’ with ‘Sai Buhari’, Sai APC.’

  At a point, they trooped into the pavilion where they chanted the slogan, “Sai Buhari, Sai Buhari, Sai Buhari.” 

  It took the intervention of security operatives to chase the “disgruntled supporters” out of the stadium.

  The Guardian gathered that this embarrassing situation arose all because the handlers of the PDP rally for the Jonathan/Sambo 2015 re-election failed to disabuse the minds of political pessimists that the opposition party in this month’s general elections is seriously contending the ancient crocodile state.

  So, besides the campaign recording a low turnout of party faithful, what should have been a demonstration of homecoming for Vice President Namadi Sambo in the former seat of power of the defunct Northern Region was hijacked by die-hard supporters of the APC, to drum solidarity for their torchbearer, retired General Muhammadu Buhari. 

  As early as 8.00am on the day (last Saturday) of the rally, the signs were ominous, as many armed security operatives were deployed to strategic places and various highways in the metropolis. 

  Many shops were under lock and key, while the popular Central Market (Kasuwa Market) was virtually empty. 

  A lot of people stayed indoors, just as major roads like the Ahmadu Bello Way, Constitution Road, and the Independence Road recorded very low traffic.

  Despite this state of affairs, people still found their way to the stadium to give support to President Jonathan’s second term bid for the presidency. 

  Several factors may have accounted for the unimpressive turnout of party people and supporters. 

  First, the organising committee, in charge of mobilisation of supporters to the rally, only came to the venue with a few buses conveying people.

  However, thousands of APC’s supporters, apparently also mobilised by some members of the organising committee, besieged the rally ground, carrying PDP supporters’ banners and wearing the party vests. 

  Thus, the Jonathan campaign train, including top PDP chieftains, which arrived at the venue at 1.45pm, was stunned to meet a scantily populated gathering of PDP supporters at the ABS, a stadium that has 25,000 capacity. 

  Kaduna State Governor, Ramalan Yero, virtually confirmed the low turnout of the party people, when he spoke to journalist after the rally.

  According to him, contrary to its claim of being popular, the APC rented the crowd that attended the Buhari/Osinbajo presidential campaign rally in Kaduna.

  This scenario was quite different from the picture painted by the Director-General of the Presidential Campaign Organisation of the

Goodluck Jonathan/Sambo, Kaduna Chapter, Alhaji Hussaini Jallo. 

  Few days to the rally, he had boasted, at a press conference, that his team was planning to mobilise over two million people to welcome President Jonathan and his group.

  The group had inaugurated a 35-woman campaign committee for the project, which they claimed would mobilise both women and youths and also make the unprecedented crowd that attended the APC presidential campaign rally a fortnight, a child’s play.

  It was reliably gathered that each of the newly inaugurated sole administrators of the 23 local government areas of the state had been mandated to convey 1,000 supporters from their locality and were allegedly given N3 million naira each for that purpose.

  Some non-governmental organisations in the state were not left out from the mobilisation efforts, as they were tasked to bring supporters for the Jonathan/Sambo rally.

  While inaugurating the 35-woman Campaign Committee in Kaduna last week’s Monday, Alhaji Jallo charged the party women to mobilise at least 2,000 women from each of the 255 wards in the state.

  Jallo explained that the idea for massive mobilisation was to show the president and his entourage that Kaduna is a PDP state, which is also home to Vice President Sambo.

  He said: “I expect at least 2,000 women from each ward to come out, as President Jonathan campaign team visits us. 

  “We must show that Kaduna is for the PDP because here is the home state of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigerian, Arch. Namadi Sambo.”

  The campaign director also charged the committee members not to limit their campaign to that of Jonathan but to all the PDP candidates vying for elective positions.

  In her response, the leader of the committee, Mrs. Nah Gambo, pledged to work hard for the success of the president in the election, as well as all the candidates of the ruling party.

  A former Northwest Woman Leader of the party, Mrs. Laitu Danladi, dismissed the activities of APC in the state, saying that, “the people in the party are empty barrels that make the loudest noise.”

  But the poor turnout of PDP supporters and other Nigerians to the Jonathan campaign rally was a disappointment to many of the top government officials who came into the stadium to observe the level of preparation. 

  This was shortly before the arrival of President Jonathan and his party entourage, ministers, legislators and others.

  Knowing well that Jonathan was crowning his campaign in Kaduna, to round off rallies in the Northwest zone, a visibly angry Deputy Governor of the state, Ambassador Nuhu Bajoga, who was going round the stadium, was spotted complaining bitterly, about the poor turnout, to members of the local organising committee at the main bowl of the stadium. 

  He told some of the committee members openly to “go and bring the crowd; you must produce the crowd here now.”

  It was gathered that some unnamed officials of the local organising committee allegedly diverted the “welfare package” for the party supporters.

  Hence, curiously, a section of the stadium, rather than praising the president, started singing, “Sai Buhari,” a situation that forced security operatives to chase the disgruntled supporters out of the stadium.

  The president, who arrived the stadium at about 1.30pm, went round, acknowledging cheers before taking his seat.

  In the midst of the contradictions at the stadium, a mid-drama occurred when the deputy director of the local organizing committee of the Jonathan/Sambo Campaign, Alhaji Maikudi Tela, slumped and was rushed to the hospital with an ambulance.

  Delivering a short address, President Jonathan told the people of Kaduna that the state had received significant support from his administration and they should, therefore, reciprocate by voting for the PDP during the presidential election.

  The president described Vice President Sambo as his “Siamese Twin”, saying he had actually come to Kaduna not to campaign, but to greet the people who had shown great love and support for the

PDP.

  According to him, the people of Kaduna should vote for him in February 2015 so that he would continue with his agenda of transforming the country.

  He said next year, the government would focus on youth development, a reason the former NYSC boss, Senator Ahmadu Ali, was on his entourage. 

  Jonathan insisted that through the administration’s transformational activities, he would work very hard to see that Nigeria catch-up “with those countries that left us behind.”

  He said that was why the government gave emphasis on education and was bent on rebuilding the country, and Kaduna would be its focus in the next four years “because the state has more tertiary institutions than any other state.”

  The president assured that he would revive the textile industries and make them subsist with a stable power; a development that would create more jobs for people of the state.

  In his remarks, Vice President Sambo told the president that Kaduna people were happy and delighted for the good things he had done for the state, while describing the president as a detribalised person who loves the good people of Northern Nigeria.

  Sambo highlighted some achievements of the PDP-led government in Kaduna and the North in general, which included construction of a power plant in Zungeru; constructing the largest power project in Nigeria at

Mambila; and ensuring 100 per cent completion of the fast rail tracks from Kaduna to Abuja.

  Sambo called on Kaduna people to vote for the president and Governor Ramalan Yero during the elections.

  The Senate President, David Mark, stressed the importance of Kaduna as the political capital of Northern Nigeria, saying the state must make important decisions so that other states in the North would follow.

  Similarly, Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State, who is the zonal coordinator of the campaign, urged northerners, especially the youths, not to be deceived by the antics of the opposition. 

  He said those in opposition parties were initially in the PDP “before they left for selfish reasons.”

  The PDP, he said, could be likened to a dirty mother whose children had sucked her milk to grow and later abandoned her.

  Meanwhile, Governor Yero, who spoke with journalist after the rally, said contrary to its claim of being popular, the crowd that attended the APC presidential campaign rally in Kaduna was rented.

  He said no matter the antics of APC, the PDP would win the 2015 elections.

  Yero said: “As you all know, Kaduna is a PDP state and has been so since 1999. All we have to do is to ensure we maintain PDP status in the state. 

  “Don’t forget that Kaduna is the home of the vice president, and some of the founding fathers of PDP are also from here.”

  The governor condemned the attacks of Jonathan’s convoy in some states in the North, saying that Kaduna youths had been sensitised against toeing that path. 

  Yero added that contrary to speculations, the PDP campaign in Kaduna State had been peaceful and highly successful “unlike the crisis-ridden campaign of APC.”