The screening committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has cleared Chief David Kente as an eligible candidate for the gubernatorial primaries of the party ahead of the 2027 governorship race in Taraba.
Speaking to newsmen in a telephone interview on Sunday in Jalingo after the screening, Kente said that the journey has just begun, urging the people of the state to keep faith with him.
He commended the committee for a thorough and transparent job, maintaining that the APC could only thrive as a party if all aspirants were all given a level playing field to test their popularity rather than having candidates imposed on the people.
“I am excited that we have crossed this hurdle, but I am also very conscious of the fact that this is just the beginning.
“The journey ahead of us is far more demanding, but I can tell you that I am ready to go all the way with the people of our dear State, on whose instance I am in this race.
“I must say that the committee did a good job. If we want to sustain our party, internal democracy must be allowed to play out.
“We have witnessed the fall of other political parties and organisations just because they failed to respect their own rules. We must not allow ourselves to make such mistakes.
“All aspirants should be allowed a level playing ground to test their popularity. The people should be allowed to make their choices. That is the way to go,” Kente said.
He appealed to politicians in the state to avoid utterances that could precipitate ill feelings which was capable of heating up the polity.
He also called on the youths to avoid serving as attack dogs for politicians and to always think about their own future.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Kente is in the race for the APC ticket alongside the incumbent governor, Agbu Kefas, former Minister of Transportation, Alhaji Mu’azu Sambo, and Alhaji Saleh Mamman, also a former Minister of Power.
