By Umar Dankano
All the winners in the just held elections have received their certificates of return from the Independent National Electoral Commission,INEC across the country and are awaiting formal inauguration in to various elected offices by May 29th.
But in Adamawa, one of the states in which the governorship election was declared inconclusive, the waiting game is not yet over. Athough the INEC has fixed supplememtary election for 15th April.2023, the announcemet of the new date has rather heightened anxiety, forcing the major contenders in the gubernatorial race to go back to the drawing board and review their strategies in all ramifications in order to ensure victory.
The supplementary election would be conducted in 69 polling units across the state. Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri is going into the supplementary election with a margin lead of 31,249 votes, while Senator Aishatu Dahiru Binani needs a miracle to dilute this margin from the 37,706 expected votes in the 69 polling units where the supplementary elections will take place.
Though, miracles, they say, do happen, some political pundits in the state are of the view that both candidates of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, and incumbent Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri as well as Senator Aishatu Dahiru Binani of the opposition, All Progressives Party,APC, need to go extra-mile in their campaigns in the strugglw ro occupy Dougirei Hills Government House, Yola; though both have their peculiarities in this political voyage.
Despite the alleged anti-party she faced from some members and executives of her party snd alleged disregard for a very important aspect of politics – collaborations- with everybody and anybody as well as her failure to send an olive branch to some of the APC governorship aspirants who lost to her during the APC governorship primaries, including the indifference to her candidacy exhibited by some stakeholders of the Adamawa APC, Binani has proved a point by shaking Governor Fintiri in a way he never expected.
Fintiri came to the March 18th governorship election over-confident but with poor calculations and with so many off-the-shelves strategies. For instance, he thought that his 2019 bloc votes was still intact, but he was wrong- many people in the voting bloc have realized that they’d nothing to gain from it as they had alleged Fintiri’s ‘cousins’ and close associates had cornered all the goodies meant for the bloc.
Fintiri’s second mistake, according ro pundits, was the poor deployment of logistics which was obvious from how he performed in the Adamawa North Senatorial District- his primary constituency. The governor got only 53% of votes, losing 3 of the 5 LGAs. Though, Binani also performed poorly at her central zone- she got only 45% of the total votes – winning only 3 of the 7 LGAs.
When the controversial Fufore LGA result was announced, Gov FIntiri was seen celebrating victory with his personal aides at the Government House, Yola, their celwbration turnws to despair and forelorn hope as election was declared inconclusive.
In 2019 when the state’s guber election was declared inconclusive, Fintiri ran to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, for help, and equally , in 2023, when his re-election was also declared inconclusive, Fintiri ran back to Atiku still for help. In fact, in 2019, it was former governor Boni Haruna that saved the day for Fintiri. Boni at a press conference held at the PDP state secretariat highlighted the difference and the importance of registered voters and PVC collected, which today has become a working document for all political parties and INEC itself.
With what is on ground already, Binani needs a miracle to upstage Fintiri who already has 31,249 votes lead from a pool of just 37,706 votes. Nevertheless.
Politics is about interest and survival. The APC members who worked against Binanai did it to survive. For some of the stakeholders, however, it is about 2027 calculation. If APC wins the election now, the ticket is closed for 8 years, but if Fintiri wins, he will leave the scene after four years, thus 2027 will be free for those waiting in the wings.
According to pundits, some of the big PDP stakeholders who were also indifferent to Fintiri’s candidature did it to remind Fintiri that, ‘big’ is ‘big’. Fintiri went into the election almost solo with his lieutenants, but he could not get an outright victory but managed an underdog-like inconclusive victory.
However, on the part of the INEC which is supposed to be an impartial umpire, the alleged leaked audio conversation said to have a conversation between the Resident Electoral Commissioner,REC.Barrister Yunus Hudu Ari and the returning officer of the controversial Fufore Local Government Area, Dr.Bashir Daneje purportedly to compromise the results in favour of one of the contenders has thrown up the integrity of the INEC for scrutiny as many are calling for the head of REC Ari before the conduct of the rerun election.
Latest of such calls was from the headquarters of the people’s Democratic Party through the National Publicity Secretary,Hon.Debo Ologunagba who addressed a world press conference on Tuesday,4th April in Abuja condemning the alleged unfortunate action of REC Ari and demanding for his immediate removal as REC in Adamawa state for equity and justice.
In the text of the conference captioned “April 4, 2023 Hudu Ari Must Go”,Ologunagba while protesting on behalf of his party,PDP, against the continued stay in Office of Yunus Hudu Ari as Adamawa State Resident Electoral Commissioner drew attention of Nigerians and the International Community to the conduct of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with respect to the forthcoming Governorship re-run election in the State.
“From credible information available to our Party, INEC is stoking a breakdown of Law and Order in Adamawa State with the continued stay in office of Mallam Hudu Yunusa Ari as Adamawa State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in spite of his alleged complicity in the plots to manipulate the outcome of the Governorship election in the State, even with PDP’s clear lead of 31,249 lawful votes in the election.
“It is provocative and unacceptable that INEC retained Mallam Yunusa Ari to conduct the April 15, 2023 governorship re-run election despite being reportedly caught on tape directing the Electoral Officer of Fufore Local Government Area of Adamawa State in Hausa Language to alter election results in favour of the defeated governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Senator Aisha Binani.
“The continued stay in office of Mallam Yunusa Ari in the face of widespread outcry by the people of Adamawa State amounts to pushing the people to the wall and daring them to do their worst.
“The PDP dismisses the lame denial of the leaked audio tape by the exposed INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner. The basis for recusal by an umpire is the accusation of likelihood of bias. In this case, apart from the accusation, there is audio evidence against Mallam Yunusa Ari and he cannot by any standard superintend over the Adamawa Governorship re-run election without widespread suspicion of his actions.
“In view of these grave allegations and evidence of the audio tape already in the public domain, Mallam Yunusa Ari should immediately recuse himself from superintending and/or conducting the re-run governorship election in Adamawa State on April 15, 2023.
“The PDP invites Nigerians to note that INEC relieved the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Sokoto State, Dr. Nura Ali over allegations of irregularities in the conduct of the just concluded elections in that State.There is therefore no justification for the continuing stay of Mallam Yunusa Ari as Resident Electoral Commissioner in Adamawa State in the face of these grave allegations except for sinister reasons
“The PDP therefore demands that the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu immediately remove Mallam Yunusa Ari as Resident Electoral Commissioner in Adamawa State”.Ologunagba insisted.
In the same vein,the Adamawa state leadership of the Inter-party Advisory Council, IPAC, urged the INEC chairman,Professor Yakubu Mahmud to as a matter of public importance and urgency remove the embattled REC,Hudu Yunusa Ari .
At a press conference in Yola Thursday,Chairman of the Council,Hon.Bello Babajo said if the allegation of the leaked audio against Ari is anything to go by then leaving him in Adamawa state will cause serious damage and bring set back in the political atmosphere in the state.
“We call on INEC chairman and its Management to remove the Resident Electoral Commissioner,Hudu Yunusa Ari and bring someone whose integrity is not questionable because as it is we have lost confidence in Ari”.he council demanded.
Analysts say Fintiri has the brightest chance of coasting to victory in the April 15th supplementary election all things being equal, but his political clouth may have been affected negatively. And if nothing is done to check that sownward trend, choosing a successor from the PDP may be a herculean task.
On the other hand, politics watchers said Binani’s chance of winning the April 15 election is very slim. According to them, she has, nevertheless, dazzled Adamawa peopes with her performance, despite little support from her party in the state and open anti-party displayed by some party executive members. “She has made a strong political statement”.
