…The group that is fighting Senator Binani within the APC appears determined to go the whole hog, warts and all…
…If she becomes Governor, she won’t give us anything, even now when we ask her for something she doesn’t give us anything…
…When Senator Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed Binani stationed two vehicles in Yola motor park in 2014 to convey returnees to Mubi and other places continuously for one month after the recapture of the place from Boko Haram she was not doing it as a gubernatorial candidate. She was doing it as a compassionate mother…
…The best marabouts are “empathy and compassion.” They are very much needed in this time of hardship. Spend your wealth on them and see the results…
…I just stumbled on the slip by a supposed Student Union leader speaking at the rally of an opposition candidate in Mubi. He inadvertently said “Governor Binani” at the rally…
By Ahmad Sajoh
Yesterday I sat down reflectively trying to savour the thrills and the frills of the Binani campaign.
I was watching videos of the campaign, studying the characteristics of the crowds, content analysing speeches and generally trying to make meanings out of situations when news came to me that some people had a meeting in Mubi on the Binani candidature.
The contents of the meeting and the outcome were both intriguing and instructive. The convener of the meeting is a political opportunist who may have received some inducements somewhere in order to undertake a hatchet job for a group that is too cowardly or unable to do it directly.
As he was holding the meeting, one of his pay masters who was a former deputy governor and Senator from one of the Local Government Areas in the Central Zone called and was put on speaker phone. He claimed to be related to Her Excellency Senator Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed Binani. He told the gathering that he and his group are vehemently averse to Binani being a Governor. It was very clear that the motive had nothing to do with either political leanings or patriotism.
He said they should make sure that they vote for Tinubu/Kashim and some other APC candidates but not Binani. They should do “Shinkafa da Wake.” It is indeed the most cowardly form of anti-party activity.
Many of us had preferences during the nomination process, but once the party took a position we stood by that position.
When you profess to belong to a political party, then learn to respect the decision of the party, especially if there was an attempt to overturn that decision legally and it stood. If you still disagree, the courageous thing to do for people with integrity is to come out and declare for the party whose candidate you support. But to run with the hare and hunt the hound is not the best of acts, whether in politics or other affairs of men or women. And it is even worse if you run down your blood relation.
I hold different political views with my relations but we do not run down each other because there is life after elections. We are still family.
Anyone that denigrates his or her family member in public gathering should expect no respect from his or her audience. That was the case in the Mubi meeting from those I spoke with.
The audience was not impressed at all. Many of them shouted “akwai kura a magananka” meaning the dust has not settled on your rouble rousing.
They made it categorically clear to the convener that the reasons given for his mission were untenable and self-serving. It was pretty obvious that those who served some interests during the nomination process had again found reason to revisit that interest once more.
It all brought to the fore the concept of stakeholder interest in our politics. When many times they say stakeholders are opposed to or in support of a particular political process or candidate in an election circle, what it means is that such a stakeholder group or individuals had either been induced or have been refused inducement.
Many such persons lack the electoral value to influence anything. They simply live off a past glory that may or may not be glorious.
Our former Deputy Governor and Senator is one of those stakeholders with a faded glory who is even incapable of following his former political godfather because the godfather knows of the paucity of his electoral value.
Sending a hired hand to Mubi is one thing. Going to his own local government to deliver such a message is totally different. Let him go to his local environment and say the same thing his errand boy said in Mubi. Let him try it.
Those who are giving him assignments presently may not know of the level of his emptiness. Perhaps his errand boy may be better since at least he could summon some people and still be answered even though the purpose of his summons may not be achieved.
Perhaps it will be helpful to advise his new patrons to be careful with him. He changes political parties and allegiances whimsically. But the meeting was very instructive.
The group that is fighting Senator Binani within the APC appears determined to go the whole hog, warts and all. Why are they so bent on fighting fate?
Hope they do realize that you cannot fight fate and win. The Hausa will say “In Rana ta fito, Tafin Hannu baya iya tare was.”
The Binani phenomenon is an act of God. It’s an idea whose time has come. Nothing they say or do can change that. But let them continue. Perhaps for some people, the transactional benefits of fighting Binani are higher than supporting her.
Political merchants do not care about parties, candidates or benefits to the people. They are only interested in their personal interests and how many transactions a political process can bring to their table.
From the content of the meeting yesterday in Mubi, it was obvious that the whole discussion was not about Adamawa state. It was not even a discussion about political correctness or otherwise.
Somehow in the course of the discussion, the cat was let out of the bag when the errand boy said ” if she becomes Governor, she won’t give us anything, even now when we ask her for something she doesn’t give us anything. “
Quite definitely, it is all about self interest, not about the state or the people of the state.
This reminds me of one of them who approached Senator Binani with a proposal to go visit marabouts in Chad and other places. His bill for such a worthless enterprise was humongous. What such people fail to understand is that the best magical solution to success in an electoral contest is to be good to the electorates. And to do so consistently, not just during election circles.
When Senator Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed Binani stationed two vehicles in Yola motor park in 2014 to convey returnees to Mubi and other places continuously for one month after the recapture of the place from Boko Haram she was not doing it as a gubernatorial candidate. She was doing it as a compassionate mother.
When she shared palliatives across the whole state in 2020 as a result of the pandemic, she was not doing it as a candidate, she was doing it as a blessed concerned citizen.
Those spending money on worthless marabouts who hypocritically promised all candidates victory even when they are competing for the same office should take note of this.
The best marabouts are “empathy and compassion.” They are very much needed in this time of hardship. Spend your wealth on them and see the results.
While studying the campaign videos, I came across certain phenomena that gives me a lot of hope in the Binani candidature.
Let me confess that in all my political journeys I have refrained from all forms of opportunistic tendencies. I have worked based on courage and conviction. I always try to convince myself that my position is something I can defend within a rational context.
So, while looking at the videos of the campaign, I was looking for anything that can be of value in making rational judgement on the Binani phenomenon. I saw plenty of them:
…The courage of the woman is legendary.
…The commitment of the party leadership despite the initial misgivings was exceptional.
…The patience and support of the electorate was genuine.
…The emotional display by the crowd was beyond the ordinary.
…In many places the campaign train arrived late at night, but the people waited. That is not the characteristics of an induced or a rented crowd.
Rented crowds are for a period. They don’t wait beyond the period in their contracts.
…I saw women who wore “aso ebi” not known to the candidate or party leadership.
…Men, women and youth came out in large numbers in support of the new political mantra which is “the Sai Matannan” phenomenon.
….As for the Amazing Amazon, you could clearly see the drive, the energy, the focus and most importantly, the intellectual capacity.
…She spoke with clarity. She spoke with commitment. She spoke with the conviction of someone on a journey to succeed and deploy the success for the benefit of all the citizens without any let or hindrance.
…I checked for the slip purportedly reported from Fufore it wasn’t there.
…I checked for other slips from her or from the campaign, I did not see any.
…I checked for inconsistencies, there were none.
… The campaign was generally guided by the Almighty Himself.
…No slips in statements. No mishaps on the trips. No violence to mar the process. It was all mercifully guided by God.
…Win or lose it was a good campaign.
…One amazing thing I noticed was that all the fatigue of the tedious journey instantly melted away, once the venue was reached.
…Everyone spoke measuredly. No anger. No shaky voices. And no false promises. It was indeed amazing and phenomenal.
Talking about the merciful hand of God:
…I just stumbled on the slip by a supposed Student Union leader speaking at the rally of an opposition candidate in Mubi. He inadvertently said “Governor Binani” at the rally.
…It was a pardonable error. In this era of political anxiety and frustrating existence such errors are bound to be made.
…But two things surprised me as I believe they will surprise anyone who watched the video closely.
…One was that the crowd did not just laugh off the error but they applauded the mistake, with one fellow standing right there on the podium clapping for what was supposed to be a costly mistake for his party and candidate. Was that ” the proverbial hand of God?”
…Secondly, you could hear others loudly saying ” ai dan damparane” meaning the guy was a fraudster.
Does that not prove that he was hired?
How could a hired hand be engaged to speak at a rally organized to drum up support for a serious candidate?
Throughout the Binani campaign, only identified stakeholders in each local government were allowed to speak to issues within their local contexts.
That is how it should be. All politics is local. Connecting with local communities in the contest for power is what lends credence to a campaign.
Hired guns always fire random shots and in the process they shoot off the mark. That was what happened to the young man on that stage. He was indeed a hired gun.
In ma ya damparesu ne, toh don Allah su yafe mishi
The message he was paid there to deliver could have been delivered by anyone among the critical stakeholders. But then when it is the wish of God that such a slip be made, Binani should be called a Governor at an opposition rally, nothing can stop it happening.
Ahmad Sajoh writes from 35 Oran Street Wuse Zone 1 Abuja