Yobe State APC Chairman Muhammad Gadaka has apologised and withdrawn his controversial statement urging women to divorce husbands who oppose their support for the party, saying he was only joking when he made the remark. Gadaka’s clarification followed the circulation of a video showing him addressing supporters during a political gathering in Nangere Local Government […]

Yobe State APC Chairman Muhammad Gadaka has apologised and withdrawn his controversial statement urging women to divorce husbands who oppose their support for the party, saying he was only joking when he made the remark.

Gadaka’s clarification followed the circulation of a video showing him addressing supporters during a political gathering in Nangere Local Government Area of Yobe State.

During the gathering, the APC chairman had told women whose husbands prevented them from supporting the party to end their marriages. He also offered to pay the dowry of women who followed his advice and marry them.

The statement quickly attracted public attention after the video emerged on social media, with critics questioning the appropriateness of bringing marital relationships into political campaigning and mobilisation.

Gadaka has now attempted to put the controversy to rest by withdrawing the statement and apologising to the public. He said his words were not intended as a serious instruction for married women to divorce their husbands.

In a clarification video, the Yobe APC chairman described the comment as a joke made within the context of a traditional joking relationship between communities. He insisted that it did not represent his values or his position on marriage.

According to Gadaka, he regretted the statement and did not intend to encourage divorce among married couples. He therefore formally withdrew the remark and apologised for the reaction it generated.

The controversy comes as political parties step up their mobilisation activities ahead of the 2027 general elections, with party leaders increasingly seeking to consolidate support among voters at the grassroots.

Gadaka’s latest comments have consequently shifted the focus of the controversy from his initial statement to his explanation that the remark was made jokingly and should not have been understood as a literal call for women to end their marriages.