As the people of Adamawa State count down to the 2019 general elections, political gladiators and parties stalwarts perfect moves to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress in the State. EMMANUEL SAMUEL in Yola reports on the gladiators and their chances in the 2019 governorship election.
The political arena in Adamawa State became tensed during the recently-concluded political parties primaries, particular that of the All Progressives Congress, with internal wrangling, as a faction led by the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, David Lawan Babachair, supported by the wife of the president, Aisha Buhari, was allegedly bent on imposing Buhari’s wife’s younger brother, Dr. Haliru Modibbo, against the wish of the incumbent governor of the state , Senator Mohammed Jibrila Bindow, who was also seeking a second term under the platform of the APC .
The choice of Hon. Ahmadu Umar Fintiri by the PDP as its flag bearer in the state has put the party in a vantage position to win the 2019 governorship election in the state , with or without Atiku
The contest became more interesting when the incumbent governor defeated all the APC aspirants, including Modibbo and the ex-boss of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission , Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, at the party primaries and he was declared the flagbearer of the APC in the state.
The former SGF’s faction had alleged that the incumbent governor might not work for President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory in the state following his romance with the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, who had emerged as the presidential flag bearer of the Peoples Democracy Party after the PDP convention held in Portharcourt, River
State.
The involvement of the wife of the president and the former SGF was said to have attracted sympathies votes for Bindow during the primaries as it also become a topic of discussion in offices, among civil servants, private sector, market women and religious groups.
The crack in APC may be a major setback to the party as many members of the APC have defected to other political parties and are set to work against the party and its candidate
Over 60 political parties across the country have registered their candidates for the the forthcoming general elections, according to the Adamawa Resident Electoral Commissioner, Barrister Kassim Gaidam, as the Adamawa governorship election promises to be the hottest contest which can best be described as the battle of the titans because of the emergence of former Vice President Atiku, the Wazirin Adamawa, as the presidential flag bearer of the
PDP.
Political pundits in the state opine that power may shift from the ruling APC because Atiku, being the presidential candidate of the PDP, is expected to deliver his state of origin.
This development may motivate the APC and PDP to go into a fierce political battle to prove which political party is more popular in the state
However checks revealed that the choice of Hon. Ahmadu Umar Fintiri by the PDP as its flag bearer in the state has put the party in a vantage position to win the 2019 governorship election in the state , with or without Atiku.
Secondly the crack in APC may be a major setback to the party as many members of the APC have defected to other political parties and are set to work against the party and its candidate because of what they described as impunity, favouritism and lack of internal democracy in the
party.
However, all hands are on deck as the Independent National Electoral Commission has promised to release the results of the winners of the primaries of 16 political parties monitored from 25th September to 7th October 2018 on the 9th November 2018 . INEC has so far published the particulars of candidates for Presidential and National Assembly
elections .
According to Gaidam, 75 parties had registered for the presidential and Senatorial elections. Adamawa State has 20 political parties with Adamawa Central 10, Adamawa North 12 while Adamawa South is left with eight political parties.
The contenders, their chances, the odds
Peoples Democratic Party : Hon. Ahmad Umaru Fintiri (AUF) aka Fresh Air
He is a front line politician in Adamawa, who has made a name for himself when he was the Acting Governor of the State, especially in the civil service sector. He became popular for upsetting loads of unpaid salaries arrears and leave grant, including pensions and gratuities of retired civil servants in just two months. That action alone earned him the name “ATM Alert”, with his popular slogan “The Happy days are here
again”.
Fintiri is also successful businessman who was elected to represent Madagali Constituency in 2007 and was re-elected in 2011. He rose to the rank of the Speaker, Adamawa State House of Assembly, a position he held up to 2015, when he became, twice, the Acting Governor of the state after he spearheaded the impeachment of ex-governor Murtala Nyako and his deputy, Bala James Ngilari , as the then speaker of the 7th Adamawa State House of Assembly.
A historian, who has gone down the memory line to dig into the cause of the underdevelopment of the state is set for the battle and will never settle for second best. Fintiri is no doubt a man who’s life is full of unprecedented, pleasant and unusual events. Votes from the Northern part of the state will be split between Fintiri and the incumbent Governor, Bindow, since they are from the same axis. Fintiri, who, undoubtedly, has the civil servants on his side and members of his immediate constituency, apparently stands a chance of taking over power from Senator Bindow, the APC flag bearer.
All Progressives Congress : Senator Umaru Jibrila Bindow (Sardauna Mubi)
Bindow, a political juggernaut and a household name in Adamawa State needs no introduction, especially as the incumbent Governor of the State and the flagbearer of the APC. A one-time Senator and a successful businessman who has since his inception as the governor focused on road development due to the deplorable nature of the roads which were abandoned by the previous governors of the state.
As a result of his developmental strides, particularly in road construction, he has received a lot of awards and commendations from within and outside the state as one of the best performing governors in the North East, which qualifies him for a second tenure.
As the governor and chief security officer of the state, Bindow is also confident to pilot a successful political campaign across the state to win the 2019 governorship election. With his leadership position, he is ready to use the available resources at his disposal to fight, especially PDP, to a standstill and also prove to other political parties that there is no vacancy in Dugarri, Adamawa State Government House,
Yola.
Despite his developmental strides, however, Bindow seems to have been abandoned by majority of his loyalists over alleged unfulfilled promises as he is perceived by many as not very straight forward in his dealings with them and this attitude had made quite a number of his supporters to abandon him for his opponents.
Another factor that might work against the governor is that most of the road constructions contract are handled by a company ( TRIACTA ) of which the governor is alleged to be a major shareholder .The preferred construction company had denied several indigenous companies from benefiting from his administration.
Aside his good works which have since gone down the drain, Bindow’s political career appears not sure because of the on going INEC certificate screening exercise. On November 2, 2018, Adamawa youths staged a protest at the State House of Assembly demanding INEC and the State House of Assembly to authenticate the genuineness of the governor’s credentials.
Three days after the youths protest, the State House of Assembly, on the floor of the House, presented a protest letter delivered to the Assembly by the youths. After the first reading, the Speaker of the Assembly, Hon. Kabiru Miginyawa, rejected the motion that the Assembly was not going to investigate the allegations surrounding Bindow’s alleged certificate fraud.
Unconfirmed sources have it that where Bindow claimed to have attended a higher institution and acquired a Diploma certificate in the United Kingdom was recently discovered to be a shopping plaza. While Bindow is fighting to defend the allegations of fraud in his secondary school certificate change of name, his campaign office has been closed down.
With the recent appointment of Chief Felix Tangumi as the new Chief of Staff Government House, Yola after the demise of late Alhaji Abba Jimeta, Bindow still has hopes of winning the gubernatorial election in 2019. He might use Chief Felix Tangumi as his Director of Campaign and propaganda machine to canvass votes from the Numan axis and add to the one he would share with Fintiri in Adamawa North.
But with the current of affairs coupled with strong rumours that Bindow may be disqualified if he does not defend the certificate fraud allegations levied against him, APC is already shopping for a suitable candidate as his substitute on or before the release of the final list of the gubernatorial candidates by INEC on Nov. 9.
Social Democratic Party : Mr. Emmanuel Bello
A business tycoon, going by his age and educational background, he is a worth contestant for the gubernatorial seat of the state. He is a political big wig and philanthropist from Garkida town of Gombi Local Government Area of the state.
His emergence as the flag bearer has strengthened the SDP in the state. Bello’s relationship with the electorate, particularly those affected by series attacks of the Fulani herdsmen which has left many dead and several injured while properties worth billions destroyed, is said to be cordial.
Victims of these attacks had openly praised Bello for his contributions to cushion their sufferings and hardships by giving them relief materials.
Bello contested elections twice and failed under the platform of APC as an aspiring member, House of Representatives. With the crises in APC, SDP will be the only party to square up with PDP. In politics, anything can happen.
African Democratic Congress: Senator Abdulaziz Nyako
A serving Senator, who is coming from a military background and has metamorphosed into a politician, Nyako had dumped the APC for African Democratic Party to actualise his gubernatorial ambition.
Senator Nyako had complained about the injustice and impunity in the APC as reasons for dumping the party . He is riding on his father’s political structure in the state being the son of former governor Murtala Nyako, who is still much relevant in the Adamawa political arena.
Although this is his first time to join the gubernatorial contest in the state, with his age, many believe he might be able to pilot the affairs of a state such as Adamawa which had been endowed with human resources that are placed in top positions across the globe.
However, he appears to be lacking the human relationship to mobilise all and sundry, both the grassroots and state capital, and his full dependence of his father’s political structure is not enough for him to win the governorship of Adamawa because many of his father’s loyalists have jettisoned him due to the fact that he (Admiral Nyako) is no more in
government.
