LG election: Taraba PDP leaders exchange blows over choice of candidate

<p>There was a mild drama on Thursday in Jalingo, the capital of Taraba State when stakeholders from Donga Local Government Council threw caution to the wind and engaged in a free-for-all fight.</p>, <p>The incident, which took place in the Executive Chambers of the State Government House, was necessitated by their inability to arrive at a consensus candidate who will fly the flag of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the council for the forthcoming local government elections in the state.</p>, <p>Unlike in the past, where candidates emerged through the party’s primary, the reverse, as noticed by DAILY POST, was the case, as the councils were said to have been mandated to come up with consensus candidates.</p>, <p>The inability of the stakeholders from Donga to come up with the name of a candidate who will fly the party’s banner at the council election, was observed to have ignited the free-for-all fights which compelled the former Majority Leader of the State House of Assembly, Captain (Rtd) Douglas Neatse, to descend on some persons from the council who opposed his choice of candidate.</p>, <p>The former assembly leader, who engaged in a physical fight with some PDP stakeholders from the council, was alleged to have been desperate to impose an unpopular candidate on the people of the council ahead of the forthcoming poll.</p>, <p>Speaking with newsmen after the incident, one of the stakeholders who was allegedly slapped by the former majority leader said trouble started when all PDP critical stakeholders in the local government resolved to respect the PDP zoning arrangement that has been on ground since 1999.</p>, <p>The stakeholder, Garalie Suntai, who was a former councillor, said the former majority leader, who opposed the stakeholders’ decision, insisted that the political zoning arrangement of the PDP in the council would not be allowed to see the light of day.</p>, <p>Irked by the alleged misdemeanour of the former assembly member, he said, “It is unfortunate that Ndatse, who is a product of PDP zoning