SOKOTO 2012: WAMAKKO WALKS A TIGHT ROPE

Sokoto State, the seat of the caliphate, is my political constituency. I have been part of the game of politics and processes of electioneering in the state for well over 15 years now. But I must confess that my eyes opened politically when Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa became the Governor of the State in 1999. Before then, I had taken some interest in the politics of the state. But the advent of Bafarawa changed my attitude and perception of politics in the state.

I recall that it was under Bafarawa that politics became a household affair. As governor, Bafarawa domesticated the affairs of the State to the extent that everyone had access to the corridors of power. As someone who rode to prominence through people's power, he recognized the need to carry the people along. He connected well with the grassroots through development projects that had direct impact on the people's lives. In fact, populism was his watchword and the people enjoyed his good nature and large heart for the eight years that he was in the saddle.

I recall also that Bafarawa spent more than half of his eight -year tenure with Alhaji Aliu Wamakko as Deputy Governor. One thing marked the Bafarawa-Wamakko era out. While Bafarawa was with the people, Wamakko was acting officiously like the typical civil servant who feels that everything must be reduced to officialdom. While Bafarawa was practical, Wamakko was obtuse and inapproachable. It was therefore little wonder that Wamakko, at some point, fell by the wayside. He was not the right partner for Bafarawa.

Given his poor attitude to the people, especially his officious disposition, no one ever imagined that Wamakko would turn out to be the Governor of Sokoto State. In fact, the people of Sokoto State did not reckon with him and did not really look towards him. Unfortunately, the people got a rude shock when Abuja factored him into its succession programme. Because the Obasanjo era was one of arbitrariness, the rampaging PDP machinery was unleashed on Sokoto State. The objective was to weaken the strength of the caliphate in national politics. Bafarawa was, and still remains, a good representative of the caliphate. But the big powers in Abuja wanted a different relationship with Sokoto. They therefore had to insist that the only one that can make it is one who is opposed to the Bafarawa political philosophy.

Wamakko as a renegade deputy governor fit into the bill. He was used for the destabilization of the ANPP. The PDP used him as a mole in the party and he became an agent of dismemberment. This was what qualified him for the PDP ticket. But because Wamakko himself did not even believe in his capacity to be governor, he messed up his nomination process. The result was that his nomination was invalid in the eyes of the law. That became the most important factor to rob him of his questionable mandate. But the powerful forces again stepped in and rewrote the rules. Wamakko had to remain governor in Sokoto State despite the fact that he was not the choice of the people.

But all that now belong to history. Sokoto is being born anew today. Bafarawa has since stepped aside and is taking a good interest in the presidency of the country. Nonetheless, his experience and advice are still very much sought after in the state. That is why the forthcoming elections will be keenly fought. It will be a straight fight between the people of Sokoto State largely represented by Bafarawa and the reactionary forces represented by Wamakko.

But one good thing in all this is that the people of Sokoto State are now wiser. They have since taken notice of the rape visited on the state by Wamakko's elements. They are looking back to the first four years of Wamakko with regret. They say the only thing they can hold on to as Wamakko's achievement was the desperate effort at undermining Bafarawa and everything he stood for. While the people expected the dividends of democracy, what they got was the culture of hate and vengeance instituted by Wamakko.

The people have therefore resolved, this time, that the party is over for reactionary elements. They no longer want the culture of anger and hate. They want a return to the years of rural and urban transformation which the Bafarawa government represented. In the light of the foregoing, he people are looking forward to what ANPP has for them. Fortunately, the party has given them a gift of promise. With the fatherly advice of Bafarawa, the party in the state has made a wise choice in the person of Alhaji Yushau Ahmed. The ANPP candidate, a decent young man, has no history of wrong-doing.

He is a private sector technocrat who, for decades, was a seasoned banker. His record of service was sterling. And when he ventured into politics after his disengagement from service, be made a remarkable impact. The people of his constituency attested to the fact that they had a quality candidate in him. However, he did not get to the Promised Land at the time because of the high level conspiracy which the federal forces visited on Sokoto State. But today, he has re-launched himself at a state-wide level and many agree that he is a good product to take to the political market. Yushau is noted for his quiet disposition. Since his campaigns began, he has done so much to impress it upon the people that he is humble and level-headed. Unlike Wamakko, Yushau is down to earth. He is a home-bred politican who understands the value of being people-friendly.

As someone who does what he says, Yushau is optimistic that the votes of Sokoto people for him and ANPP will translate to accelerated development in the state. Since Wamakko's regime has stagnated the state in the area of infrastructural development, Yushau hopes to reverse this ugly past and usher in a new dawn where the people will smile again as they did during the Bafarawa era.

Indeed, Yushau is the instrument of change. He is the barometer that the people of Sokoto State are using to guage the performance of Wamakko; and they have since discovered that he (Yushau) is the breath of fresh air that has eluded the state since the exit of Bafarawa in 2007. Yushau is certainly set to steal the show. He will wrestle power from Wamakko come February 18, 2012.

Ibrahim writes from Lagos.