The Zamfara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has vowed to investigate the circulation of a forged APC membership card allegedly bearing the name and photograph of notorious bandit kingpin, Bello Turji.
The party said it discovered the fake card on Monday, describing it as the handiwork of mischievous elements seeking to discredit the party and disrupt the ongoing electronic registration (e-registration) of members in the state.
This was contained in a statement issued by the APC Publicity Secretary in Zamfara State, Yusuf Idris Gusau, who said the forgery was easily detectable and poorly executed.
According to the statement, even a layman with little knowledge of APC membership card issuance could identify the forgery, citing the emboldened “26” on the date field of the card, purportedly referring to January 26.
The party noted that the photograph used on the forged card was a widely circulated image of Bello Turji, well known to security agencies and the general public.
The APC further explained that no individual can be duly registered as a party member without a National Identification Number (NIN), stressing that Turji does not possess one, thereby rendering the entire exercise fraudulent.
“Before any person is enrolled by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the individual must fill out a form containing full personal details before capture. How then could NIMC capture someone in military uniform with a gun on his shoulder?” the statement queried.
The party also revealed discrepancies in the registration details, noting that from its records of the ongoing registration in Kware Ward, there was no membership ID number beginning with the prefix ‘26’, which is designated for Niger State, not Zamfara.
It explained that Zamfara State APC registration codes begin with ‘36’, further exposing the ignorance of those behind the forgery.
The APC disclosed that preliminary investigations had linked the forged card to Babangida Aliyu Shinkafi (Waziri), an associate of Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi, who was recently suspended from the e-registration exercise due to alleged misconduct.
According to the statement, the forged card first surfaced on Shinkafi’s Facebook account, strengthening suspicions of his involvement.
“The APC e-registration coordination in Zamfara State and the state chapter of the party completely debunk and distance themselves from the fake membership card with registration number ID: APC 261113000102,” the statement said.
The party urged well-meaning citizens to disregard the fake card, assuring that investigations were ongoing to identify and apprehend those responsible.
It added that the matter had already been reported to security agencies, expressing confidence that the perpetrators would be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.
