BY DR AMINU MOHAMMED,
DEPT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF
FLORIDA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
The 2023 general elections in Nigeria have come and gone. Although the elections came with surprising anticicidents in various parts of the country, one can say the elections in Zamfara state are exceptional cases.
Besides being a traditionally APC state, all the who and who of the APC politics in the state came togather under a reconciliation arrangement between Gov Bello Mohammed Matawallen Maradun and former Gov Yari with Sen. Kabiru Marafa on the other hand.
An investigation into the reasons behind the reconciliation revealed that, Gov Matawalle who was hitherto troubled by the fight against bandits and other too many fronts, including opposition, internal party crisis and other serious concerns, was initially to unite the divergent political camps togather to concentrate on the fight against the banditry Headon.
The Gov therefore hoped that the unity would bring along, some significant relief along with victory in the 2023 general elections. This hope became even greater when the success in the Feb 25th Presidential and National Assembly elections were overwhelming as the state wondered the nation by giving the President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu the much needed votes, placing the state ahead of other northern Nigerian states on the election thereby reducing the opposition PDP to a paper tiger, as was the case in the past.
However, despite these culminating strengths brought by the unity in diversity in the APC in the spirit of reconciliation against the opposition PDP, the ruling APC lost the March 18th Governorship election to the PDP. One would certainly ask ” What went wrong out there?”
As a student of political science and an indigent of the state, I was too keen to know what exactly happened that led to the PDP defeating all these who and who giants in the APC in Zamfara state.
I was in Nigeria when the elections were conducted and indeed participated in some of the elections. I also had several discussions and conducted some interviews with some active members of both the APC, as well some members of the PDP in the state. This was to enable me come up with a valid document that will provide an insight into the reasons behind the victory of the opposition PDP and the lost of the ruling APC in the March 18th Governorship elections.
My heart to heart discussions with the key actors in the state polity revealed to me that, it was a case of grand conspiracy against Gov Bello Matawalle. My findings also corroborated with what the key political actors told me, that is ” Grand Conspiracy against the Gov.” and the conspiracy was both within and outside the APC, comprising some key trusted members of the Gov’s close circle. Thus:
- There were serious anti-party activities by some key stakeholders within the APC circle.
- The urge by some members of the party to become the next Governor in 2027.
- The Fight between former Governors Yarima and Yari had a significant effect on the March 18th Governorship election in the state.
- The anti- party activities by former Gov Yari boys have had serious consequences on Gov Matawalle ‘s re-election bid in the March 18th Governorship election.
- The serious urge and unity of Zamfara Central/ Gusau Town to produce Gov.
- The inability of large proportion of Gov Matawalle boys to actively monitor and keenly participated in the elections processes.
However, the most heart-touching and worrying amongst these factors were the anti-party activities by House of Reps member- elect Hon. Aminu Sani Jaji during the March 18th Governorship election.
Aminu Sani Jaji who was supported by Gov Matawalle to secure the nomination for the House of Reps seat ticket and stood by him to win the election, has been fingered and accused of masterminding Matawalle’s lost in the March 18th Governorship election.
Aminu Sani Jaji refused to go to his local government area to arrange, monitor and ensure peace for the conduct of the Governorship election, because he knew Birnin Magaji is a strong hold of the Gov. Instead, he masterminded the inability of the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct the Governorship elections in his local government Birnin Magaji, using his connections with the security operatives and vigilante groups to instigate security breach where they pretended that bandits went on rampage which prevented the conduct of the elections there. According to our source, Jaji was convinced by Yarima to participate in the anti-party activities with a promise to support Jaji to contest the 2027 Governorship election in the state against Yari’s candidate Muktar Shehu Idris, if Matawalle lost the 2023 Governorship election, an ambition Jaji has been nursing for long.
Jaji was caught directing key lieutenants to actively participate in the anti-party activities across the state. This is why all his supporters and close allies in the 14 local government areas of the state voted for PDP againstAPC. Infact, Jaji used the following lieutenants to achieve the plan to unseat Matawalle by supporting the PDP. They included a former SSG to Yari Professor Abdullahi Mohammed Shinkafi who was the secretary to the Matawalle Campaign Council, Aliyu MC Tsafe a commissioner in Matawalle’s government, Hon Muhammadu Umar Birnin Magaji, Hon Nasiru Zarumi Masama (all serving Commissioners in the Matawalle administration). Others are the Sole Administrators of Birnin Magaji, Zurmi and Maru, as well as a host of other political office holders appointed by Gov Matawalle on the recommendations and nominations of Jaji.
Sani Jaji also refused to go to INEC headquarters in Gusau to ensure APC was not rigged out in the elections.
Most annoyingly, as a key stakeholder of the APC, Jaji who supposed to have been on ground preparing for the supplementary elections scheduled to hold on the 15th April 2023 to support Sen Kabiru Mafara, Sanusi Garba Rikiji and Ahmed Usman Lancaster to win their seats, he abandoned this very crucial responsibility for Mecca to attend Lesser Haj along with those who helped him rigged the elections against APC in favour of the PDP, which is an indication that he worked against his party. To buttress this point, Jaji went to the lesser haj along with all those that seriously fought Gov Matawalle in the elections. Ibrahim Mohammed Danmadamin Birnin Magaji for example.
Yet, it is this same man who is vigorously campaigning for the position of speaker of the House of Representatives under the party he sabotaged in favour of the opposition PDP. Our sources said Sani Jaji who has been too ambitious in life is a serial betrayer and can do anything to get his ambitions realised. He has been betraying his political godfathers since he joined politics. He betrayed Yarima to join Yari camp and betrayed Yari to join Matawalle and now betrayed Matawalle for Dauda.
The President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu should therefore be careful of people like Aminu Sani Jaji, not to entrust or support him for any sensitive positions in his government, as he can betray him at anytime he has an ambition to pursue.
I was also reliabily told that former Zamfara Gov Ahmed Sani Yariman Bakura and some key lieutenants to former Gov Yari, were part of the conspiracy against Gov Matawalle, as they too engaged in the anti-party activities tha led to the lost of the APC in the March 18th 2023 Governorship elections.
Others being accused are the former Deputy Gov Muktar Ahmed Anka and Hon Abdulmalik Zubairu Zannan Bungudu, Sani Gwamna Mayanci, Sani General, among other conspirators.
Investigations carried out revealed that former Gov Ahmed Sani Yarima has since the reconciliation between Gov Bello Mohammed Matawalle and the former Gov Yari with Sen. Kabiru Mafara, been planning how to sabotage the success of the APC in the state governorship elections.
According to the investigation, Yarima who has been fighting Yari since 2019 elections was also angered by the choice of Yari to be the Chairman for the Matawalle Campaign Council, while he is alive and healthy. The source disclosed that Yarima disguised as an elder in the Matawalle and Yari camp, planning on how to win the March 18th Governorship election with another motive aside this. He was working for Dauda Lawal Dare all along, betraying the trust and confidence entrusted to him by the Matawalle and Yari camp.
A source very close to both Yarima and Dauda Lawal Dare disclosed that Yarima and his team were severally seen visiting Dauda Lawal Dare residences in both Gusau and Abuja betwee 2 to 3 am in tinted glass vehicles along with some other collaborators.
Yarima who played similar double standard during the 2019 general elections against Yari in favour of Dauda and Sen. Marafa, has since the reconciliation of the APC members been revealing to PDP, all the secrets discussed within the APC circle, giving advantages to PDP to know the strength and weakness of the APC and planned ahead.
Yarima who earlier rejected vehemently, the idea of the reconciliation at the initial stage, has been fighting Yari, following their fallout in the 2019 Governorship election after Yari discovered that it was Yarima who masterminded losing the won Governorship election by Mukhtar Shehu Idris to PDP at the Supreme Court.
Supprisingly, Gov Matawalle nominated and supported Yarima Son Abba Ahmed Sani to be elected into the House of Representatives during the Feb 25th Presidential and the National Assembly elections.
Yarima was using former Deputy Gov of the state Muktar Ahmed Anka, a close ally to Gov Matawalle to be getting information on all the election plans of Matawalle camp and was revealing the secrets to Dauda Lawal Dare. Event Yarima was also using his boy Kogunan Maru Abdurrahman Tumbido, a close ally of Dauda Lawal Dare to effectively carry out his mastermind of the conspiracy against Gov Bello Matawalle and Yari.
Dr Aminu Mohammed
wrote from University of Florida, United States of America.
