Police Prevent Political Showdown Between PDP and APGA in Abuja

A potential political clash between supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) was thwarted by police officers in the Kuje Area Council of Abuja on Saturday.

The intervention came just days ahead of the forthcoming local council elections, after tensions escalated over a campaign billboard.

According to reports, the dispute began when attempts were made to remove a billboard bearing the image of the incumbent council chairman, Mr. Shabab Tete, who is seeking re-election on the PDP platform. The billboard had been mounted in front of the council secretariat.

Speaking on the incident, the PDP Youth Leader for Kuje, Adamu Dogo, explained that the billboard was originally put up by PDP supporters, some of whom later defected to APGA. Trouble broke out when the defectors attempted to replace the image with that of the APGA candidate, Haruna Yerima.

Dogo argued that the APGA supporters had no right to alter the billboard, noting that the funding for the signage came from the PDP. He suggested that any changes should wait until after the March 19 election, when voters would have decided their preferred chairman.