Bafarawa And The Dividends Of Defection:The Inside Story

0
84

BafarawaIn the heat of political permutations on the 2015 general elections the partisan allegiance of several leading politicians underwent a lot of stress leading to dramatic decisions to cross-carpet. Though such decamping is more or less part and parcel of politics in Nigeria, there were a few of them that still raised eyebrows. Perhaps the most controversial of the cross-carpeters was former Sokoto State Governor Dalhatu Attahiru Bafarawa from APC to the PDP which was consummated at a grand reception rally in Sokoto on February 8, 2014 presided by President Goodluck Jonathan himself. Though Bafarawa is a veteran of decamping, having traversed the partisan perimeters of ANPP to DPP to ACN to ANPP to APC before the final (?) somersault to PDP which is the subject of this article, his motivation this time around was more remarkable than his destination.

It can be recalled that the no less dramatic departure of Sokoto State Governor Aliyu Magatakarda Wammakko from the PDP into the APC in pursuit of genuine democracy and transparency in politics triggered the chain of events that saw Bafarawa going in the opposite direction in what seems to be a continuation of the long standing simmering rivalry between them. This background however does not account fully for Bafarawa’s latest mutation as observers and associates have recently found cause to believe there is a lot more than meets the eye in Bafarawa’s new found preference for PDP which has consistently been his “no-go party” since 1999.

While Bafarawa may muster all the rhetorical arguments to lend a more credible posture to his decamping he will definitely find it difficult, if not impossible, to shrug off increasing consensus among his closest aides and vigilant political observers that pure pecuniary pressures provided the main impetus for the deft political move. Several years out of government and in the harshly strange territory of political opposition have taken the expected toll on the political as well as the personal fortunes of the former Sokoto Governor and this was evident long before the season of cross-carpeting. In fact, Bafarawa has categorically stated that “my joining PDP did not come from Abuja but from here in Sokoto” in response to “rumours making the rounds in the state that I was given N2 billion to join PDP”.

But rumours especially from the political arena always have root in certain realities in keeping with the wise saying “no smoke without fire”. In this case some of the flames were ignited by the unmistakable sharp contrasts  in the status of Dalhatu Bafarawa before and after he commenced  what can best be described as horse-trading with the PDP preparatory to making his final move to decamp from the APC. Indeed, the former governor himself made graphic reference to the prospects of reward when he told a group of journalists that “the essence of politics is dividends” as reported in THISDAY March 27 edition, pointing out how victims of the Sokoto Kara Market fire were generously compensated by President Goodluck Jonathan during a commiseration visit. He enthused “in the last two months of joining PDP things are(sic) going well for my people”.

National growth LS

The billion naira question (no pun intended) is how Bafarawa has fared in terms of “dividends”  in the same period since it would be unrealistic, even ridiculous, to suggest that he could be left out of the compensation so generously showered on “his people” by the PDP President. In fact Bafarawa who was on the verge of insolvency -he had not paid his domestic aides- is neither dumb nor selfless to look the other way while billions of naira are rained on his followers, even if “logistics budget” is not his automatic entitlement. It is instructive to observe that Bafarawa’s long shut petrol stations in Sokoto have all undergone extensive rehabilitation recently.  So it’s actually just a matter of time before what was more than met the eyes of the common man about Bafarawa’s defection to PDP is revealed for public consumption. Well the time is here!

The following narration of events and transactions are derived from impeccable witnesses and verified documentary evidence :

Dalhatu Attahiru Bafarawa opened an account at UBA in the name of DALHATU INVESTMENT LIMITED, No. 2 Lake Alau Close, Maitama, Abuja, on 4/6/2009. As at December 2, 2013 had a balance of N 3,819,066.20. No records of this company at the CAC after search.

On December 23, 2013, the account balance read N511,397,052 after a N 500 MILLION electronic transfer (NEFT) into the account from “OFFICE OF THE NATION”

The next day on December 24, 2013, the balance dropped again to N6,194,952 following the withdrawal of N450 MILLION, for call deposit opening in the same bank.

An account whose highest withdrawal between December 10 -23, 2013 was N3 MILLION came alive with hefty withdrawals totalling at least N35 MILLION in 24 hours ! The withdrawals were in favour of Bafarawa’s well known aides.

The period above coincides perfectly with the active pro-PDP actions and utterances of Bafarawa.

On December 31,2013 Bafarawa opened an account in the name of SHEIKH ABDULRAHMAN AL SUDAIS FOUNDATION at UBA Sokoto with he and his children as directors and he and one of them as signatory as recorded at the CAC. It had an opening balance of N 1, 196,210.02 on December 31, 2013.

On January 10,2014, this account received a cheque payment of N250 MILLION from DALHATU INVESTMENTS LIM ITED, raising the balance N250 MILLION from ZERO CREDIT. A call deposit account was opened with the sum on January 21, 2014.

 Sheikh Abdulrahman Al Sudais is actually the renown and revered Imam Of Makkah and no relation of Dalhatu Bafarawa. It is also not an Islamic Foundation as may be construed from the lofty name, certainly not from the source and circumstances of its huge naira deposit and disbursements to non-Muslim persons/purposes recorded. Bafarawa’s foundation shares the same Abuja address with DALHATU INVESTMENTS LIMITED.

More revealing are the transactions recorded in the period of the February 8, 2014 PDP Sokoto Rally and formal reception of Dalhatu Bafarawa into the PDP. Between January 31, 2014 and February 7, 2014, over N100 MILLION was disbursed in 18 withdrawals to a wide range of people including aides, politicians, top journalists, no doubt in preparation for the reception rally.

For now these astonishing revelations of “dividends” as the “essence of politics” in Bafarawa’s bankable defection dynamics will suffice  as an initial instalment of  a forthcoming series of political exposes that capture the ugly reality of what really lured Bafarawa into the PDP and how he was able to transform from imminent pauperization to instant multi-millionaire status before you can say PDP!

Follow Us On WhatsApp