By Adamu Muhd Usman.
“No amount of tricks of the trade will avoid the need to set some sort of priority when allocating one’s time.” — John Harvey Jones (1924), British business executive and author.
Nigeria is a very amazing country where the fortunate become the unfortunate and the unfortunate become the fortunate, and Nigeria is the country where whatever you think is impossible becomes possible and the possible becomes impossible. I wonder why someone will labour to build a house, but because of envy, jealousy, and selfish interest or selfish aggrandisement, will attempt or move to destroy it.
APC won the gubernatorial election in 2023 under the watch of the then governor of the state, H.E. Alhaji Muhammadu Badaru Abubakar, but no one can come out Godly and courageously to say Badaru made Dan Modi the governor of Jigawa state, but totally the will and wish of Allah.
The emergence of Malam Umar Namadi (FCA) a.k.a Dan Modi as Jigawa governor took all or many PDP members, followers, supporters, and well-wishers across the state by surprise, especially the APC circle. In fact, there were several attempts and plots to overshadow, deprive, and block him from aspiring and contesting, but the will of Allah prevailed in the end, and he emerged victorious in both the primaries and the general election.
There were allegations of commotion between the two political APC leaders in Jigawa state of Badaru’s camp against his successor, Malam Umar. I appeal to people to make this story well researched, investigated, and verified. Some of these moves are planned by the enemies and envious; also, it was alleged Badaru’s minions helped undermine the return of APC in 2027. There seems to be desperation around Badaru’s in order to feather their own nests.
Dam Modi started off well for the one year and some months now, despite some fake resistance and empty threats from the so-called Badaru’s loyalists.
Malam, being a faithful and decent individual, doesn’t want trouble at unset since I know him as a young man far back in the late 70s and 80s, not to talk of now, as too and fully matured and a governor of a state for that matter. Secondly, as he is a party man, he strongly believes in party culture and party tradition. Thirdly, the humanitarian attitudes and relationships cannot permit him to toy away with it and some other components of being human, Muslim, and togetherness, and as a layman as I am, I vividly know and believe there is no way a minister (appointee) can stabilise or beat a sitting governor in political activities, power, prudence, and all that in his state.
The situation at stake now has become so pronounced that it even attracted the media engagements within the APC among the two factions (groups). As a Nigerian, a Jigawa indigene, a political observer, a commentator/analyst, and a proponent of freedom of expression, I feel duty bound to put my thoughts and exercise my constitutional rights of freedom of speech since the matter is already in the public domain. Mind you, I am enjoying my constitutional rights. Nigerian constitution has granted me whether is PDP or APC or NNPP or APGA or any political party I can say a word or two.
Strong evidence has shown that the current governor of the state, Malam Umar, has closed his two eyes, fell deaf ears on this political brouhaha, and tried not to need the attention or care of its existence and happenings, all for peace to reign. But still the praise singers want to push Badaru on godfatherism.
Godfatherism is one of the defining features of Nigerian democracy. It generally refers to a situation in which an influential or prominent personality fishes out, pushes, and probably enforces and supports a particular person to be an aspirant, candidate, and perhaps elected, and when elected into office, does the bidding of the ‘sponsor.’ Based on the above narration or godfatherism context or concept, what are the roles played by Badaru and Dan Modi in Malam Umar’s emergence as Jigawa governor in 2023 despite the deprivation, humiliation, and intimidation Dan Modi encountered when he was the deputy of the state for Badaru to claim or want to apply godfatherism attitudes on Malam Umar? I want to know.
This is the political affliction of Jigawa state at the moment. Former governor, now minister of defence, H.E. Alhaji Muhammadu Badaru Abubakar is claiming to have put the incumbent governor, Malam Umar, in office. Now allegedly vows to hinder Dan Modi’s return to the seat come 2027 and that will still affect the presidential election. So, watch out.
In Jigawa state, the phenomenon of godfatherism was and is not in place since the creation of the state in 1991 unless H.E. Badaru intends to open the new chapter now.
When Dr. Sule Lamido (CON) and the late Alhaji Muhammadu Abubakar Rimi (of blessed memory) paved and facilitated the emergence of the first elected civilian governor of Jigawa State, Barr. Ali Sa’adu Birnin-Kudu, in the fourth republic under the defunct political party, Social Democratic Party (SDP), during the military era under the administration of General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, they (Lamido and Rimi) did not dictate to him. In short, let’s limit it to Sule Lamido alone since the late Rimi was in (old) Kano state and Lamido was in present-day Jigawa state. Sule Lamido did not manipulate or try anything wrong or otherwise to claim or dominate or show any tendencies of godfatherism to H.E. Barr. Ali Sa’adu or undermine his government for any reason. This free and open governance by any governor passes all across the other governors, from H.E. Ali to Senator Saminu to H.E. Lamido to H.E. Badaru himself. So, why should Malam Umar’s be different? Why will he face this undemocratic style, which will lead to Jigawa deteriorating and stagnating, probably backwards? After all, many of Badaru’s loyalists and close associates were all over in this present administration, which shows signs of continuity of APC administration, not Badaru administration. Mind you, this issue of political dispute between the Jigawa governor and the Nigeria minister from Jigawa is all Jigawa concern, not an APC issue, because if it is not called to order, it will affect everyone in the state for the state.
We don’t want a situation or things happening in Rivers, Kaduna, Zamfara states, etc., to happen in Jigawa. Will Badaru muster the power to reverse the process of dismantling his political legacies and achievements? Indeed, should he even muster such a power, would it make it any different from the way he is being perceived by observers within and across the state or even out the state?
There are certain suggestions I would like to put forward. Eminent political leaders, northern elders, elites, Ulamas, traditional rulers, etc., are trying to help make peace between Governor Namadi and Badaru, whose relationship is trying to soar as allegedly been heard, observed, and speculated. Most of all is to call Badaru to order. He knows that seat of a governor, and he knows who the governor is. Unfortunately, if he fails to heed the trace of his political steps, the achievements Badaru struggled and worked hard to put in place would be rubbished by the puppet he is engineering, encouraging, and allowing to go unthinked, unchecked, and uncontrolled at the moment.
In any civilised society, moral space and good democratic settings should not be. For the simple fact that Badaru committed mistakes while in office, that does not mean he should allow himself to be lured, deceived, used or propelled into this crisis or mess and forget the achievements and some legacies he left behind in Jigawa.
He should concentrate on his primary assignment as a minister of defence to tackle the insecurity in the country, in which every day there is a rise in the north and the south, especially in December last year, 2024, and this January, 2025.
I am asking my Jigawa people again to do the needful and save the state, especially with prayers. If we bring unnecessary pressure on our brother in faith, in tribe, in culture, in locality, and as a human in general—not on political affiliation—then, one aside, he would not run in 2027; but before that election, he has already achieved greatness and destiny, but not knowing what Allah can plan for him, maybe a bigger assignment? We just have to think and plan for a better, bigger, and greater Jigawa come 2027. Who the cap will fit for another party’s candidate or continuation of Malam Umar Namadi a.k.a Dan Modi 4+4? If it actualised it means that the terminology or saying or motto is true and has come to be a reality and come to stay: “Malam yana kan dai-dai.” ?
Adamu writes from Kafin-Hausa, Jigawa state.
