Insecurity: Zamfara Gov And His Quest For Safe Haven

By Nuhu Abubakar

Nikola Tesla, a Serbian-American inventor, Electrical Engineer, Mechanical Engineer, and futurist best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system once said “my belief is firm in a law of compensation; the true rewards are ever in proportion to the labour and sacrifices made.

This quote fits precisely into the prevailing situation in Zamfara state where a state government compensated bandits and allowed the victims to lick their wounds. With rising insecurity especially banditry emerging from Zamfara state, opinion leaders in the state opted for punitive major but the state Governor Bello Matawalle decided to negotiate and subsequently grant them amnesty. In justifying his actions, the Governor said “Not all of them are criminals. If you investigate what is happening, and what made them to take the laws into their hands, some of them, sometimes were cheated by so-called the vigilante group”. “They normally go to their settlements and destroy property and take their animals. They did not have anyone to speak with, so sometimes, they go for revenge. When the vigilante group attacks them, they go for reprisals. That is exactly what happened,” the governor said.

This was roundly condemned by good spirited Nigerians especially Kaduna State Governor Nasiru El  rufai, Civil Society Organizations and some traditional rulers in the northern part of the country. Gov. El rufai clearly stated that no bandit deserves to live adding that they supposed to be served justice so that they would have a date with their makers. Also, Gov. El rufai’s stance was re-echoed by a group known as Arewa Thinktank along with his collegues across the country led by a lawyer and human right activist, Sahabi Sani Sami. They frowned at the manner in which events were unfolding in Zamfara State and other parts of North West. The group specifically called on the president Muhammadu Buhari to immediately dispatch a high powered federal government investigative team to Zamfara state in order to ascertain the true situation on ground particularly the manner the amnesty was carried out. They also reminded Gov. Matawalle that banditry and terrorism are federal offences adding that he has no constitutional right to interfere in them let alone granting amnesty.

Sami Sani led group also requested that the president should forthwith; prevail on Zamfara state governor Bello Matawalle to stop the show of shame of granting amnesty to bandits saying that within a reasonable period, if their requests are not met, they would proceed to International Criminal Court (ICC) to prompt them to take action on the mass murder, arson and gross abuse of fundamental human right of the people of Zamfara state and the inaction of the government to arrest and prosecute the perpetrators. They also threatened to write to embassies to bar Bello Matawalle from traveling outside Nigeria.

 

Remarkably, it was alleged that most of the bandits granted amnesty by the Gov. Matawalle were the masterminds of Kankara school Kidnap in Katsina state, Kagara boys kidnapping in Niger state and other banditry and kidnapping incidents in Jangebe, and Tegina.

 

This exhibition of gross incompetence as regards to governance has made the Governor of Zamfara state to start looking for safe haven. This voyage has led him to the latest adventure of possible defection to the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC). Analysts have described this as another wrong political calculation which will not only cost him his power bloc but also disintegrate APC in the state.

 

It would be recalled that the 2019 Zamfara State gubernatorial election, APC's Mukhtar Shehu Idris polled 67.41% of the total popular votes, defeating PDP's Bello Matawalle who got 23.89% of the total votes and trailed behind by a margin of 345,089 votes, and several minor party candidates.

The total number of registered voters in the state was 1,717,128 while 823,294 voters were accredited. Total number of votes cast was 810,782, while total number of valid votes was 792,938. Total rejected votes were 17,844. A total of 42 candidates registered with the Independent National Electoral Commission to contest in the election. APC candidate, Idris Shehu, won election by polling 534,541 votes, defeating APC's Bello Matawalle who came second with 189,452 votes. The party also won all the State House of Assembly seats, Federal House of Representative seats and three senatorial positions in the state. However, internal party crisis threatened APC's chance to continue governing the state and this led to Supreme Court invalidating not just APC votes but also handing victories to PDP candidates which led to the emergence of Bello Matawalle.

 

Again, Gov. Matawalle who benefited immensely from rule of law is currently on the verge of going against the laws of Federal Republic of Nigeria. Appeal Court had in one of its landmark judgments ruled that one of the reasons why an elected office holder would leave his party was if there is internal crisis in the party. Also, if the party sizes to exist, it could be a good reason to look for an alternative platform. So, in effect that an elected office holder defects to another party without leveraging on the two stated conditions, the Appellate Court stated that the person resigns the mandate he/she got from the original party. It is on record that there’s no internal wrangling in Zamfara state chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and also, the party is still in existence.

 

Political pundits are of the opinion that Zamfara State House of Assembly, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other relevant government agencies should be on standby to carry out their relevant constitutional functions if Gov. Matawalle make good of his intention of cross-carpeting to APC before the expiration of his current tenure.

 

Significantly, there is an inglorious part of APC constitution which makes a sitting governor the leader of the party in the state thereby allowing him to hijack the structures of the state chapter of the party. This exactly is a time bomb waiting to explode in Zamfara state. This is because Zamfara is an APC state and all the candidates that won elections in 2019 that was nullified by the Supreme Court have not been compensated including their various power blocs. Also, bringing the incumbent governor from almost non-existing PDP in the state to hijack the APC structures may spell doom for the party.

 

This may lead to series of litigations, and possibly results to APC not fielding candidates in the forthcoming 2023 General Elections. With this, PDP may be waiting by the wings once more to benefit from the crisis that will brew in APC, just the way they benefited in 2019 in both Zamfara and Rivers States. It is on record that PDP has never won governorship election in Zamfara state. The closest they came was in 2011, when the then incumbent Gov. Shinkafi who came on board in 2007 on the platform of ANPP (now APC after merger with ACN, CPC and a faction of APGA) cross-carpeted to PDP. But he lost to APC’s Alhaji Abdulazeez Yari. It is also on record that President Muhammadu Buhari has not lost presidential election in Zamfara state since 2003 he started contesting.

 

These could be some of the possible calculations of the incumbent governor which he hopes to benefit from come 2023; but it is important to remind President Muhammadu Buhari and the Interim Chairman of APC Mai Mala Buni that time has come for the amendment of APC constitution in order to protect the power blocs of the party, staunch member, stalwarts and structures that gave the party successive victories in past elections.

 

Stakeholders in APC in the state are already kicking against the planned (and possibly concluded) defection of Gov. Matawalle to the party. They alleged that he was looking for safe haven after a not-too-brilliant performance in PDP. They feared that most of his failed policies especially the botched amnesty programme which compensated bandits and left the victims to their fates, may affect APC adversely if Bello Matawalle is allowed to join the ruling party.

 

He should not be welcomed or allowed to join APC rather he should stay back in PDP and fix the problem he has plunged the state into by not listening to the advice of the elders of the state. He should take up the responsibility of a good leader which he has always pride himself to be and walk through the murky waters in order to solve the menacing effects of banditry and poverty ravaging the people of Zamfara state.