Former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and emerged as the party’s governorship candidate in Gombe State ahead of the 2027 election.
Pantami secured the PDP ticket on Tuesday through a voice affirmation during the party’s primary election held in Gombe.
Chairman of the PDP Electoral Panel, Hon. Gregory Yenlong, declared him the sole aspirant and officially returned him as the party’s flagbearer.
Speaking after his emergence, Pantami said his decision to contest was driven by a desire to serve the people of Gombe State.
“I am in this race to offer service to the people of Gombe State,” he said.
He also pledged to run an inclusive administration rooted in justice and fairness if elected governor in 2027.
“If elected, I will govern with fairness and justice,” Pantami assured party supporters.
His emergence sets up a major political showdown with the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Jamilu Gwamna.
Pantami’s defection followed his fallout with the APC over the party’s governorship primary process in Gombe. The former minister had openly criticised the emergence of Gwamna as the APC consensus candidate, insisting on a direct primary election.
Although he initially pushed for primaries, Pantami later withdrew from the APC contest on the eve of the election, alleging lack of transparency in the process.
His move to the PDP, however, triggered controversy within the opposition party, with four governorship aspirants protesting what they described as an attempt to “smuggle” him into the race after participating in APC activities.
In a communiqué issued after an emergency meeting in Gombe, the aggrieved aspirants — Alhaji Abdulkadir Hamma Saleh, Hon. Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki, Hon. Usman Aliyu Garry and Mrs Monica Kaltho — argued that the law does not permit a politician to defect to another party and immediately participate in the same electoral process after contesting elsewhere.
The aspirants said they welcomed new entrants into the PDP but opposed any arrangement that would compromise fairness within the party.
Despite the protests, PDP stakeholders eventually rallied behind Pantami, endorsing him as the party’s candidate for the 2027 governorship election in Gombe State.
