The Nuhu Ribadu Formula

Source: pointblanknews.com

Now that Mallam Nuhu Ribadu has declared his intention to contest for the

governorship of Adamawa state on the platform of the Peoples Democratic

Party (PDP); the Adamawa political scene has changed. Thus, poster and

briefcase politicians who were waiting for the PDP governorship ticket to

be given to them on a platter of gold will have to work for it. In

addition, those segments of the society which were hitherto indifferent to

the political scene because of the absence of new and reliable candidates

are now reawakened.
Almost all the contestants for Adamawa PDP governorship ticket; their

supporters and godfathers are now jittery because of Ribadus entry into

the race. Their fears are genuine and understandable-like some people

think- Nuhu will be given an automatic ticket- no primaries.

Hitherto, most of the contestants have not put on ground serious campaign

structures- they were waiting for Abuja to bulldoze the way for them. Out

of the blue! Abuja is now looking the other way. So, they are now

groaning. One of the contestants was even quoted saying Nuhu needs a

waiver. Nuhu Ribadu is joining the PDP, not rejoining. He does not need

any waiver. Chapter II part 1 of the PDP constitution (2012 as amended) is

very explicit- admission into membership and procedure for rejoining are

two different things.
Nuhu is well-cultured, well-read and has integrity to jealously protect-

thus, the general belief is that he wont use this opportunity to deny

other contestants the opportunity to test their popularity.

Despite having the support and encouragement from those whom each of other

contestants needs dearly, Nuhu must work for a level playing field to

allow PDP delegates to decide their flag-bearer, because, first, at the

end of the day, the flag bearer needs the support of other contestants,

and second, to show that he indeed believes in the values he fought for,

of which transparency and equality are prominent.
Many factors were responsible for drafting Ribadu into the contest on the

platform of the PDP. First, a lot of stakeholders in Adamawa state have

come to the conclusion that Adamawa need a paradigm shift in terms of

development. Secondly, the state needs a governor that is relatively

young, incorruptible, committed, well-read, urbane, with a clean record

and one that has the capacity to leapfrog the states development to

where it is supposed to be. Nuhu possesses these qualities.

Apart from the aforementioned, there are also some salient political

factors that necessitated the drafting of Ribadu into the race. There is a

general consensus that Adamawa central should produce the next governor

and Nuhu is the perfect candidate from that zone. Though there are other

well-qualified candidates, considering the present political and economic

atmosphere, Nuhu is the best.Another factor is, the PDP has realized

its big errors- the Murtala Nyako error for instance- Nuhu has the mind to

correct such errors.
Some observers are of the view that, if Nuhu is good, must PDP be the

vehicle for him to be governor? Nuhus immediate constituency, his

senatorial zone, most of his friends and peers and indeed Adamawa state

are overwhelmingly PDP, so naturally he should be in the PDP.

However, the battle will not be easy for Ribadu both at PDP primaries and

the main elections. Other contestants will put up a fierce fight for

delegates votes or for juicy political compensation. On the other hand,

the APC with Atikus guidance will present a sophisticated counter-move

to get massive support from some segments of Adamawa people. The APC would

also use the Adamawa central card, but with an additional political

move- its candidate will be from Adamawa central, but may be different

from Nuhu in terms of tongue and faith.
The advantages Nuhu Ribadu has are: he is naturally charismatic, young,

well-read, urbane and clean hands. He also has a higher chance of

winning the elections on the platform of PDP than APC because the PDP is

well rooted in the state. The recent woes of APC in the state too would

work against them.
Nuhus superb qualities further give him and whichever partys flag he

bears, an edge over every other candidate and party. So, with the current

political and economic situation in Adamawa state, Nuhu Ribadu is the

formula for any political party to win the October 11 governorship

election- the PDP is smart to quickly grab the opportunity.

Zayyad I. Muhammad writes from Jimeta, Adamawa State, [email protected],

08036070980. He blogs at www.zayyaddp.blogspot.com

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