The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe State has cleared former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Pantami, Usman Aliyu Garry and Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki to contest its fresh governorship primary scheduled for Tuesday, September 29, 2026.
The fresh primary follows a September 24 judgment by the Federal High Court in Gombe, which nullified the earlier process that produced Pantami as the party’s candidate for the 2027 governorship election and ordered the PDP to conduct another primary within 30 days.
Gombe PDP State Publicity Secretary, Abdulkadir Ahmed Dukku, confirmed that the three aspirants had been cleared to participate in the rescheduled contest.
Dukku said the party would comply with the court’s directive and conduct the exercise in line with its rules and applicable electoral laws.
“We will conduct the fresh primary in accordance with the judgment of the Federal High Court,” he said.
He also dismissed suggestions that Pantami had been barred from participating, saying the party was not aware of any Supreme Court judgment disqualifying the former minister from the contest.
The September 24 judgment, delivered by Justice Amina Aliyu Mohammed, followed legal challenges by PDP governorship aspirants, including Garry and Mailantarki, over the process that produced Pantami as the party’s candidate. The court held that the earlier exercise failed to comply with the party’s procedures and applicable electoral provisions, leading to the exclusion of aspirants who had been screened and cleared to participate.
Pantami had emerged from the earlier process through a voice affirmation after joining the PDP following his unsuccessful bid for the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship ticket.
However, the court declined the plaintiffs’ request to disqualify Pantami outright or remove him from the PDP over allegations that he remained an APC member at the relevant time. Instead, it nullified the previous primary and ordered the party to conduct a fresh exercise in accordance with its constitution, guidelines and electoral laws.
The legal dispute has continued despite the order for a fresh primary.
Lawyers representing some of the challengers have filed a notice of appeal against the aspect of the judgment that leaves Pantami eligible to participate in another primary. They have also filed a motion seeking a stay of execution.
The application seeks, among other reliefs, to restrain the PDP from conducting the fresh primary with Pantami participating and to prevent the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from monitoring or supervising such an exercise pending the determination of the appeal.
The challengers have also relied on a recent Supreme Court interpretation of provisions of the Electoral Act concerning party membership registers submitted to INEC ahead of primaries. They argue that Pantami was not included in the PDP membership register submitted to INEC within the statutory period and should therefore not participate in the fresh contest. That argument remains part of the ongoing legal proceedings.
The pending legal challenge, however, has not displaced the Federal High Court’s order directing the PDP to conduct another primary, and the Gombe chapter of the party has maintained that Pantami, Garry and Mailantarki are all cleared to contest. The PDP announced September 29 as the date for the repeat exercise and directed eligible delegates to assemble at their respective ward areas to vote for their preferred aspirant.
The party has also urged its members, supporters and other stakeholders to remain peaceful and conduct themselves orderly during the exercise.
The fresh primary is expected to determine the PDP’s candidate for the 2027 Gombe State governorship election, although the eventual status of the nomination remains subject to the outcome of the continuing court proceedings.
For Pantami, the exercise is another opportunity to secure the PDP ticket after the court set aside the process that initially produced him. For Garry and Mailantarki, the fresh contest provides an opportunity to compete directly for the ticket after the court found that qualified aspirants had been excluded from the earlier exercise.
