On Kano’s search for Shekarau’s replacement
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- Written by Shehu Ismail Takai
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With Governor Ibrahim Shakarau of ANPP about to complete his eight-year tenure in 2011, political aspirants from their main rival, the PDP, are also leaving nothing to chance to ensure they snatch power from the ruling party at the state level. One of the notable governorship aspirants from the PDP is Alhaji Mohammed Abacha, the son of the late military ruler, General Sani Abacha. Though Mohammed has not officially declared his gubernatorial ambition, he has become an emerging force to reckon with in the PDP. Support for his ambition is rapidly building up among the younger members of society, who constitute a significant percentage of the eligible voters.
However, despite his younger age, Mohammed seems to be politically calculating in his strategy to win the nomination of his party to stand as a governorship candidate in 2011. Rather than conducting his aspiration with so much razzmatazz and arrogance, Mohammed Abacha is undertaking state-wide tour of the 44 local governments in Kano State to consult with the stakeholders. Besides these consultations, he also identifies himself with social events such as wedding events, even where it involves the ordinary people.
For example, he was recently at Faruruwa village of Takai Local Government Area of Kano State where he was surprisingly mobbed by thousands of his admirers who have repeatedly urged him to join the governorship race. The crowd was so huge that it took Mohammed six hours to reach the venue of the wedding fatiha. The PDP Chairman in Takai Local Government was giving out the hands of his daughter in marriage but Mohammed’s presence suddenly turned an ordinary event into a spectacular political gathering.
It seems Mohammed Abacha has managed to kill two birds with one stone; while attending the wedding event, it also afforded him the opportunity to meet party stakeholders to discuss his gubernatorial aspiration with them. At another stop-over at Wudil, Mohammed was greeted by another mammoth crowd of supporters that turned up to welcome him.
Speaking on the occasion, a party elder and one of the founding fathers of the PDP, Alhaji Salihu Darki noted that anybody who is sincerely interested in the progress and prosperity of Kano State should support the gubernatorial ambition of Mohammed Abacha. According to him, Mohammed is an asset to the party because he enjoys tremendous goodwill among all the people of the state and sometimes this admiration cuts across party line.
The party elder argued that Nigerian politics need younger people like Mohammed because they have the energy, vision, focus and commitment to socio-economic progress of the people. He expressed confidence in Mohammed Abacha, saying he is one of the few politicians who are motivated by service rather than money making. Alhaji Darki argued that Mohammed is already comfortable in life but he is not comfortable with the level of poverty among the vast majority of the ordinary people.
He maintained that Mohammed cannot change things from outside no matter how rich he may be. In other words, people must seek elective offices in order to bring about change. In fact, even billionaires in Europe and America have to seek election in order to be able to influence the course of government in the interest of the people. Though traditionally born into riches, the Kennedys sought elective offices in order to serve the people better by being in government.
One of the common observations politicians make about Mohammed Abacha is the level of humility he has demonstrated by visiting party stakeholders to seek their support. In addition, his commitment to social causes through his silent philanthropic activities is another factor that has tremendously endeared him to the people, including the youths who are mobilizing support for him with remarkable zeal. These young men believe so much in him with unshaken conviction.
If the level of crowds that greets Mohammed whenever he visited is a gauge to test popular acceptance, he is the man to beat. One of the interesting things about Mohammed Abacha is that he is not connected with any PDP faction in Kano State; instead he is more interested in the wider interest of the party. Party unity is his dominant concern because, without it, such weakness could play into the hands of their ANPP rivals.
The humble manner with which Mohammed approaches his gubernatorial ambition party explains why he enjoys an incredible groundswell of good will among the people. Therefore, the biggest challenge before the PDP is to ensure that it does its homework properly by encouraging the emergence of a widely acceptable nominee as its gubernatorial candidate in 2011. Since his entry into the PDP, Mohammed has been supporting the party to grow from strength to strength, especially at the time it is facing the tough challenge of replacing the ANPP administration in Kano State.
Takai wrote from 42, Ali Akilu Road, Kaduna.
On Kano’s search for Shekarau’s replacement
Category: Comments Written by Shehu Ismail Takai Hits: 1776
Just like propaganda and advertising, one of the grimmest challenges of politics is capturing the hearts and minds of potential voters. In this struggle, the aspirants not only try to promote their programmes for the people but also present their personal qualities as a qualification for the offices they seek to occupy. By their nature, political campaigns demand so much energy, resources and time but the aspirants don’t hesitate to make the sacrifices. No doubt the desire for change in Kano State is gathering momentum and the people of the state face the task of evaluating the quality of those seeking to lead them in 2010.With Governor Ibrahim Shakarau of ANPP about to complete his eight-year tenure in 2011, political aspirants from their main rival, the PDP, are also leaving nothing to chance to ensure they snatch power from the ruling party at the state level. One of the notable governorship aspirants from the PDP is Alhaji Mohammed Abacha, the son of the late military ruler, General Sani Abacha. Though Mohammed has not officially declared his gubernatorial ambition, he has become an emerging force to reckon with in the PDP. Support for his ambition is rapidly building up among the younger members of society, who constitute a significant percentage of the eligible voters.
However, despite his younger age, Mohammed seems to be politically calculating in his strategy to win the nomination of his party to stand as a governorship candidate in 2011. Rather than conducting his aspiration with so much razzmatazz and arrogance, Mohammed Abacha is undertaking state-wide tour of the 44 local governments in Kano State to consult with the stakeholders. Besides these consultations, he also identifies himself with social events such as wedding events, even where it involves the ordinary people.
For example, he was recently at Faruruwa village of Takai Local Government Area of Kano State where he was surprisingly mobbed by thousands of his admirers who have repeatedly urged him to join the governorship race. The crowd was so huge that it took Mohammed six hours to reach the venue of the wedding fatiha. The PDP Chairman in Takai Local Government was giving out the hands of his daughter in marriage but Mohammed’s presence suddenly turned an ordinary event into a spectacular political gathering.
It seems Mohammed Abacha has managed to kill two birds with one stone; while attending the wedding event, it also afforded him the opportunity to meet party stakeholders to discuss his gubernatorial aspiration with them. At another stop-over at Wudil, Mohammed was greeted by another mammoth crowd of supporters that turned up to welcome him.
Speaking on the occasion, a party elder and one of the founding fathers of the PDP, Alhaji Salihu Darki noted that anybody who is sincerely interested in the progress and prosperity of Kano State should support the gubernatorial ambition of Mohammed Abacha. According to him, Mohammed is an asset to the party because he enjoys tremendous goodwill among all the people of the state and sometimes this admiration cuts across party line.
The party elder argued that Nigerian politics need younger people like Mohammed because they have the energy, vision, focus and commitment to socio-economic progress of the people. He expressed confidence in Mohammed Abacha, saying he is one of the few politicians who are motivated by service rather than money making. Alhaji Darki argued that Mohammed is already comfortable in life but he is not comfortable with the level of poverty among the vast majority of the ordinary people.
He maintained that Mohammed cannot change things from outside no matter how rich he may be. In other words, people must seek elective offices in order to bring about change. In fact, even billionaires in Europe and America have to seek election in order to be able to influence the course of government in the interest of the people. Though traditionally born into riches, the Kennedys sought elective offices in order to serve the people better by being in government.
One of the common observations politicians make about Mohammed Abacha is the level of humility he has demonstrated by visiting party stakeholders to seek their support. In addition, his commitment to social causes through his silent philanthropic activities is another factor that has tremendously endeared him to the people, including the youths who are mobilizing support for him with remarkable zeal. These young men believe so much in him with unshaken conviction.
If the level of crowds that greets Mohammed whenever he visited is a gauge to test popular acceptance, he is the man to beat. One of the interesting things about Mohammed Abacha is that he is not connected with any PDP faction in Kano State; instead he is more interested in the wider interest of the party. Party unity is his dominant concern because, without it, such weakness could play into the hands of their ANPP rivals.
The humble manner with which Mohammed approaches his gubernatorial ambition party explains why he enjoys an incredible groundswell of good will among the people. Therefore, the biggest challenge before the PDP is to ensure that it does its homework properly by encouraging the emergence of a widely acceptable nominee as its gubernatorial candidate in 2011. Since his entry into the PDP, Mohammed has been supporting the party to grow from strength to strength, especially at the time it is facing the tough challenge of replacing the ANPP administration in Kano State.
Takai wrote from 42, Ali Akilu Road, Kaduna.