How to capture Gebe Local Government

Mai Karanshap is the coordinator of my campaign in Gebe Local Government. Soon after our meeting with all our local government area coordinators, we decided to hold meetings with them individually to work out plans for how to conquer each local government. This is because each local government has its unique political features. People in […]

Mai Karanshap is the coordinator of my campaign in Gebe Local Government. Soon after our meeting with all our local government area coordinators, we decided to hold meetings with them individually to work out plans for how to conquer each local government. This is because each local government has its unique political features. People in other parts of the country think that we here in Tafki State are ethnically and religiously homogenous. What they don’t know is that there are still enough differences between the people of our local governments and in fact enough differences within each local government to warrant an individual plan for each one of them. We decided to start with Gebe because it is my own local government.
Mai Karanshap is a motor mechanic by trade. He has a very big workshop near the motor park in Gebe town, headquarters of the local government council. It is divided into sections: mechanics, electricians, panel beater, painter and sprayer, and a vulcaniser. Maikaho once took me to visit Alhaji Idi’s workshop. I saw a lot of crankshafts, pistons, gear boxes, back axles, carburettors and water pumps in different piles all over the workshop. Alhaji Idi himself no longer touches any car; his boys do all the work while he supervises them. He combines his trade with politics, to which he devotes even more time these days.  He is a very good political coordinator because everyone in Gebe knows him and while he is repairing people’s cars, he hears a lot of stories about what is happening around town.
Alhaji Gohe now asked Mai Karanshap to present his plan. He was not holding any paper, so I wondered how he can present any plan. It soon became clear to me that Mai Karanshap did not need any paper; he knew Gebe politics like he knows a Peugeot engine. Leaning back in his chair and half closing his eyes, he said, “I will give you a general picture about the politics of Gebe Local Government. We have three major types of differences in our local government which our campaign must try to bridge in order to achieve success. Number one, there is a problem between Gebe, Burkullu and Kade districts. The other two districts are always opposed to Gebe district; when Gebe goes one way, they go another way. Even the Gebe Development Association that we formed, the people of Burkullu and Kade refused to participate. They accuse Gebe of always trying to dominate them, that all the elected chairmen of the Local Government came from Gebe. That is because Gebe district has six wards while they have two each.”
Mai Karanshap continued, “We also have ethnicity problem in our local government. The people of Gebe district say that the people of Burkullu arrived from the east and that they borrowed farmlands which they are now claiming as their own. As for the people of Kade, they are fishermen. Their grandparents arrived in small canoes from the south and they were allowed to stay by the river side, catching and selling fish. Now they are saying it is not true, that it is their land.”
“This is serious,” Gohe remarked, but Mai Karanshap continued. “Apart from that,” he said, “we also have a problem in politics with the three district heads, Danmalikin Gebe, Sarkin Jejin Burkullu and Mairafin Kade. The three of them are cousins and also in-laws but they will never sit down to enjoy the same tree shade. Apart from that, we also have a problem with two religious sects. Malam Muhamman Maigemu of Gebe town has many followers of his sect while his rival Malam Mai Layar Zana of Burkullu also has followers in all the villages of our local government. Whenever an aspirant seeks the support of one sect, they will say you must not be seen talking to other sect.”  
I coughed at that point and said, “Mai Karanshap, with all these problems how can we capture Gebe local government? And you know this is my local government. If I don’t capture it, then I am finished politically because Goshin Bauna’s people will go and say I don’t have support even at home.” “We can win Gebe,” he replied. “Since Alhaji comes from our local government, the people of Gebe want their son to become the governor. They are saying that this current governor took many big projects to his own Kwazazzabo Local Government. He did roads, he built a general hospital, he did water project, he brought School of Nursing, he built market and when there was a small fire that consumed some houses, he used that excuse and made the state government to build houses for them, including for families that were never affected by the fire. So because of that we want our own son to become the governor.” 
“So what should we do?” Gohe asked him. He said, “We should begin by mobilising all the social clubs and women associations; we should form ward campaign teams to paste Alhaji’s posters on every wall and guard them from Goshin Bauna’s people; then we should go and talk to the three district heads and the two Malams. I also want Alhaji to undertake a tour of the 4 towns and 31 villages in the local government, including the Fulani rugga. Finally, I want us to quickly mobilise the Yan Daba Youth Club of Burkullu town to support us. They are very useful because everyone in Gebe Local Government is afraid of them. Last time when we were campaigning for one aspirant, some delegates took his money and we heard that they were not going to vote for him at the party congress so we told Yan Daba. They went and forced each one of them to return the money, then they gave each one of them a dirty slap.”
Alhaji Gohe now said, “Mai Karanshap, since what we are doing now is working to win the delegates at the party congress, not the general election, what should we do?” The coordinator replied, “It is true we cannot trust the party officials in the Local Government because the governor pays them an allowance from his pocket every month, in addition to the contracts they are getting. However, the Yan Daba can take care of them. They will tell them that anybody who does not support the candidate from our local government, he can as well remain in the state capital because his family house will become ashes.”