Returning Officer Declares Hon. Yusuf Gagdi Winner of PKK APC Primary Election

By Asile Abel, Jos

The Member representing Pankshin/Kanke/Kanam (PKK) Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi, has emerged victorious in the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election held in Plateau State.

Announcing the official result at the party’s state secretariat in Jos, the Returning Officer for the PKK primary, Barrister Nandom Kura, stated that the election was peacefully and successfully conducted across all 36 wards in the constituency.

According to Kura, the process fully complied with the party’s guidelines and electoral procedures, with Rt. Hon. Yusuf Adamu Gagdi polling 29,207 votes out of 31,150 total votes cast.

The Returning Officer rejected reports of parallel results circulating online, describing them as unofficial and lacking legal backing. He stressed that those behind the alternative declaration were neither recognised nor authorised by the committee overseeing the PKK primary.

Similarly, the Chairman of the APC House of Representatives and Senatorial Primaries Exercise Committee in Plateau State, Hon. Stella Okotete, emphasised that only duly appointed officials of the committee had the authority to supervise and announce the election results.

The development has continued to generate mixed reactions among political stakeholders in Plateau State, with supporters from opposing camps defending the legitimacy of their respective claims.

Speaking with journalists shortly after the announcement, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi affirmed that the primary was properly conducted across all 36 wards. He noted that accreditation materials, video recordings, and photographs were available to verify the transparency of the exercise.

Gagdi dismissed reports suggesting multiple valid results, insisting that only two declarations emerged — one of which has now been discredited. He described an earlier declaration credited to one Daspan Ishaya as fraudulent, noting that the individual was never appointed by the electoral committee and therefore lacked the authority to declare any result.

“The party’s constitution and electoral guidelines clearly empower only the approved electoral committee to appoint officials for the exercise. Any result declared outside that process remains invalid,” he stated.

Our correspondent gathered that celebrations erupted in parts of Kanam and Pankshin shortly after the latest result was announced.

The PKK APC primary had earlier generated controversy following the emergence of two separate declarations announcing different winners.