Between Tinubu And Adamu

The Evangelist edition
October 11, 2022
By Emeka OBASI

Many politicians will get a permanent address in retirement pretty soon. Senator Abdullahi Adamu is top on the list and the man who will send him to journey of no return is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Bola Tinubu.

I found myself rolling on the floor when Adamu, who is Chairman of the ruling APC barked like a stormtrooper, dismissing his party’s presidential campaign council. He does not understand yet that Asiwaju and politics sleep on the same bed.

As a boy, the only Adamu I knew was an assault rifle used by soldiers during the Civil War. I would not know why that particular weapon was called Adamu. It does appear the APC chairman will be hearing about this gun from this piece.

This APC Adamu is a lawyer. He was not trained in weapons handling. The way the APC chairman went about his party’s presidential primaries is what will send him back to Keffi to read more about political law and tactics. Tinubu is an accountant and I do not expect the APC national leader to bank on Adamu.

There was no way Asiwaju could have emerged as the APC flag bearer if Adamu had his way. The plot was to hand over the ticket to Senate President Ahmed Lawan as Consensus candidate. I think those behind that game banked on President Muhammadu Buhari’s backing.

Lawan was drafted into the plan and believing that it was a done deal, did not bother to do the necessary groundwork. It appeared Tinubu was going to lose. Luck smiled on the Jagaban. Those who plotted against him did not do their home work well.

In the Bade area of Yobe State, the national hero they know may be Wing Commander Adamu Grema. He was pilot of the Nigeria Air Force Fokker 27 flight that crashed off Escravos Bay on May 25 1980 while carrying a Federal Government delegation to Sao Time and Principe.

Lawan does not command enough crowd in Bade, his base, to pull presidential votes even if he has been in the National Assembly since 1999. He could be a good Geographer but Geo- politics is not taught in any Nigerian University.

When Senator Kashim Shettima likened Lawan to a tomato seller from Maiduguri in the eyes of an Ohafia man, it sounded harsh. Shetti – Bobo who is used to the Northern harmattan, quickly apologized when the odds seemed to be in favour of the Senate President.

Tinubu literally rose from the dead to knock out Lawan and other contenders. He did not expect that last minute miracle. Adamu and his kitchen cabinet froze, like hot Abuja was Siberia. Asiwaju hammered them all in his acceptance speech.

After passing through the valley of the shadow of death, Tinubu will not loose guard. The Lagos State Waste Management Authority ( LAWMA ) does not only handle garbage. There is enough political waste to clear. I doubt if Lawan knows much about LAWMA.

The name Bashir Sherrif Machina is interesting. It sounds like machine gun. He has gunned down an elephant. Yobe North Senatorial District will have a new Sherrif, come 2023. And this one does not bash heavy duty cars, he crushes them.

Adamu is senior to Tinubu in politics. He was part of the Constituent Assembly that ushered in the Second Republic. The former Nasarawa State governor was Chairman of the National Part of Nigeria ( NPN) in Plateau State. He was a minister under Gen. Sani Abacha.

While Tinubu was running away from Abacha, Adamu was rolling with the general. In 1999, the two politicians became governors. Adamu won in Nasarawa, Tinubu did in Lagos. They must have been friends. I cannot remember now if Asiwaju was one of Adamu’s guests when the latter took a new wife as governor.

One other thing I remember about Adamu is that he is the first civilian governor of Nasarawa State. The first governor of the state was one young officer, Wing Commander Ibrahim Abdullahi. Sadly, Abdullahi died in 1999, same year Abdullahi Adamu was sworn in as governor.

I cannot figure out why Adamu wanted a Northerner to succeed Buhari. This is exactly the same job Dr. Iyorchia Ayu is doing in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP). He is fighting for a Northerner to rule for another eight years.

I found out that Benue connects Adamu, Ayu and Lawan. The APC chairman was at Government Secondary School, Makurdi. The PDP boss is Tiv. The Senate President spent his National Youth Service years in that state. I can now understand why governor Sam Ortom is in the middle of the political belt.

Adamu, a contractor, was at the Benue Cement Company, home of BCC Lions. Tinubu is the Lion of Bourdillon. Adamu knows enough to construct a solid bridge to connect the South and the North. He tried to build a Berlin Wall. Tinubu bulldozed his way.

Lawan hails from Gashua. President Olusegun Obasanjo was taken to that town by Abacha. I have forgotten why OBJ was relocated to the North – East. If I had my way, all those who want to heat up the polity under this perilous climate would be sent to Gashua, on a study tour.

I am not sure Gashua is safe anymore. It could be in the hands of the shadow government. That reminds me, all those who wanted Lawan to be honoured with the APC presidential ticket, will they show much love by following him back to Gashua after May 29 2023?