Top shots battle to reposition Adamawa APC
Fourteen months after losing the governorship seat to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Adamawa State are still in pains, and have begun strategizing to reposition the party in the state.
Before the elections, APC’s Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow, who was the then sitting governor, was the favorite to win the election but surprisingly he lost.
Pundits opined that former governor Bindow was responsible for the failure of the APC because he refused to release enough resources to enable him win the election, thereby providing the enabling environment for the former vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to take advantage of the situation and bank roll the PDP campaign to victory. Atiku had earlier promised to return the PDP to power in Adamawa.
Others say Bindow is not to be blamed rather, the anti-party activities of some senior stakeholders of the party led to the failure of the party.
Some political analysts also maintained that with the array of powerful stakeholders such as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, wife of the president, Aisha Buhari, former SGF Babachir Lawan, former EFCC chairman Nuhu Ribadu, former governor of Lagos State Muhammed Buba Marwa, personal assistant to the president on Domestic Matters, Alhaji Sarki, chairman and Chief Executive officer of the NDLEA, Muhammed Mustapha Abdallah and a host of elected members of the state and National Assembly need to have worked as a team to deliver Adamawa to APC but they failed because of their irreconcilable differences.
It is against this background that most of the APC members in the state are working hard to ensure they push the PDP out of power in 2023.
The members have resolved to support a credible candidate that will defeat Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri of the PDP even if it means contributing resources to help the candidate. According to them, they are tired of selfish people who will rather destroy the party if their ambitions are not met as was the case in the last elections. Although, nobody among the APC stakeholders has openly indicated interest to contest but the names that are common on the lips of members of the party are; former Governor Muhammad Jibrilla Bindow, Boss Mustapa (SGF), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, Senator Aisha Binani, Hon. Abulrazak Namdas,
Chairman House Committee on Army and Dr. Mahmud Halilu Ahmed ( Modi). Bindow At the moment some people want him back because they are not happy with his successor’s style of leadership. According to them, one year down the line they have not seen any tangible project on ground. His supporters believed that Bindow performed wonderfully well in terms of provision of infrastructure especially roads and drainages.
In addition, some see him as a humble and accessible person and do not mind if he returns as a governor of the state in 2023. Weakness He has been nicknamed “digital”, meaning one who does not keep promises. This can count against him. It was alleged in the last election that he promised to support several persons for particular offices but failed to do so which was one of the reasons why so many people ganged up against him in frustration. The fact that he was the sitting governor but failed to release enough funds to prosecute his own election can be a minus. His certificate saga is still fresh in the minds of a lot of people. Fear of losing the seat in court to opposition after winning the election may scare many people. More importantly, there is this perception that he did not empower anybody apart from himself. Boss Mustapha He is not new in politics. He was the gubernatorial candidate of SDP in 1992, Deputy National chairman of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and a campaign director in the Buhari Campaign Organization in 2015 which ultimately ushered the President into office. Boss Mustapha is a likeable person. His current position as SGF in the present administration could be a morale booster. He has built a lot of contacts even at party level that can help him win the APC ticket. Because of his current position a lot of people are asking him to contest but he seems indifferent about it. Weakness He will be a hard sell to the people of Adamawa because he and Babachir Lawal, the former SGF are said to be “brothers.” Both are Kilba originally from Hong Local Government. Therefore, in a state where ethnic and religious politics is taken seriously, his aspiration may suffer serious setback because his ethnic group (Kilba) is believed to have taken the lion’s share in the Buhari administration. Again, a lot of people feel the short stay of Babachir Lawan was more impactful to the people of Adamawa than his period. Some of his kinsmen in Kilba land are said to be angry with him for not identifying with his ancestral home even though he used his influence as the SGF to attract some developmental projects to the local area. Mallam Nuhu Ribadu He does not need any introduction in Adamawa politics. He was the gubernatorial candidate of the PDP in the 2015 election but was defeated by Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow. His simplicity and level of contacts both within and outside Nigeria could be an advantage. As a friend of the Buhari administration, his longtime political romance with Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu may translate to his advantage for the gubernatorial race. Weakness He has a history of losing elections because of the opposition to his candidacy from within his constituency. His former position as EFCC chairman is hunting him politically. Those he arrested or investigated while in office are always working against his political interest. He is seen as a serial contestant and that has reduced his support base. Recently, some of his supporters defected to PDP in a well-organized rally. Sen. Aisha Binani Aisha Dahiru Binani represents Adamawa Central in the National Assembly. She is the second woman to be elected into the Senate from Adamawa and the first from the Central Zone. She was elected into the House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015 to represent Yola-North/Yola-South and Girei Federal constituency. She contested for senatorial seat in 2015 and lost to Senator Abdulaziz Nyako. Her constituents speak well of her representation even as a member of the House of Representatives and also as a senator. Weakness The fact that Nigeria is yet to produce a female governor is a herculean task for her. Her constituency is very conservative, therefore supporting a woman to run for the governorship of the state could be difficult. The alleged cold war between her and the first lady, Aisha Buhari, could be another factor. Hon. Abdulrazak Namdas Abdulrazak Namdas is a two time member of the House of Representatives. He represents Ganye/Jada/Toungo/MayoBelwa Federal Constituency. He was the spokesman of the 8th House and now chairman House Committee on Army. Namdas may be the dark horse. He comes from one of the largest ethnic groups in Adamawa (Chamba) and represents the largest federal constituency in the state with four local governments. The fact that his ethnic group has never produced a governor, his people will support him fully if he chooses to contest. Namdas hails from the same constituency with Alhaji Atiku Abubakar but managed to win his re-election in APC even with Atiku as the presidential candidate of the PDP. Weakness Funding could be one of his problems. Atiku Abubakar could be his nightmare too. If Atiku tolerated Namdas to win his re-election as a member of the House of Reps, he may not tolerate him clinching the governorship of the state. Dr. Mahmud Halilu Ahmed (MODI) The fact that he was the runner up to Governor Bindow in the last gubernatorial primaries is a morale booster for him to re-contest. Now that there is no incumbency factor, Dr Modi will simply assume the ticket is his. Being the younger brother to the first lady, he may get the support of political big wigs. Weakness He is seen as one of the persons that have contributed to the failure of governor Bindow. He took Bindow to court on several issues which distracted him politically. Bindow’s supporters are likely to turn against him too. He is said to have possessed little or no experience. His only political qualification to contest governorship according to people opposed to his candidature is that he is the younger brother of the first lady. This could be a disadvantage. There is this school of thought that says the first lady’s family should avoid contesting any political office because they have enjoyed the Presidency for eight years and is time for them to support another person. Senator Abubakar Girei Girei was an influential senator between 2009 and 2003. He was the only aspirant who challenged the then incumbent governor, Boni Haruna, at the PDP primary in 2003. He was among several aspirants disqualified by the party in 2007 in controversial circumstance ostensibly to pave way for Murtala Nyako’s candidacy. Since his return to the APC, the former senator who represented Adamawa Central at the senate has been an advocate of zoning of governorship to his constituency. His asset is long time grassroots political contact in the 21 local areas and wealth of experience in the game. Weakness He may not have the financial war chest to match some of the aspirants and the fact that he did not participate in contest since 2007 means he has to work harder to revive his political goodwill. He is seen as an Independent minded person. He may not appeal to some party bigwigs because he may be too difficult to control when he assumes office.