Party officials in Gombe are pushing back against claims that Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami properly left the APC. The former Communications Minister switched to the PDP after losing the ruling party's gubernatorial ticket.
Pantami subsequently won the PDP's nomination for the 2027 election. But ward executives say he never formally notified them of his departure.
Yahaya Isa Lawanti, the Pantami Ward deputy chairman, spoke to reporters in Gombe on Thursday. He insisted the ward received no resignation letter from the professor.
Ibrahim Mohammed Nata, the ward secretary, backed up his colleague's account. According to him, party officials only learned of Pantami's exit through the ward chairman.
Alhaji Bala Galda, the ward chairman, allegedly told them he'd received a letter. He claimed to have gotten it on May 23, 2026, though it was dated May 19.
An individual named Abba Pantami reportedly delivered the document. But the ward secretary raised a critical issue: no one else ever saw it.
Nata told newsmen the letter was never shown to the full executive committee. Party procedures weren't followed, he argued, despite multiple requests to view the document.
The ward executives are now saying Pantami didn't complete the resignation process properly. They want documentary proof presented before party members, as regulations demand.
No evidence was tabled before Pantami joined the PDP, they stressed. Ward officials maintained they can't confirm a resignation happened at all.
This dispute matters because proper party procedures exist for members leaving political organizations. The APC in Pantami Ward is essentially saying Pantami cut corners.
His transition to the PDP happened after the APC primary results disappointed him. He quickly secured the opposition party's governorship flag for next year's elections.
