Shekarau as a political discourse

Saidu Mohammed Sanusi, would rather think differently. One of the highlights of his article is a banal accusation that the government of Kano State, since its inception in 2003, has been under the firm grip of a particular group of Muslim elite, known as the Hudaibiyya group. He further alleged that Governor Shekarau ascended to  […]

Saidu Mohammed Sanusi, would rather think differently. One of the highlights of his article is a banal accusation that the government of Kano State, since its inception in 2003, has been under the firm grip of a particular group of Muslim elite, known as the Hudaibiyya group.

He further alleged that Governor Shekarau ascended to  power, courtesy of this all-powerful group, adding that they strategically planned, anointed and initiated Shekarau into politics, capitalizing on the Sharia hype for the realization of their political end.

The columnist expressed worry that there is now a clandestine plot to replace the incumbent administration by a scion of this same group, in the person of Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil, whose biography titled: ”The Practice of Knowledge”,  was recently launched in the state. He added that the launch is seen as the beginning of an open campaign for “Malam Magajin Malam”.  

Still attacking the group, the writer proceeded to say that the group has since permeated the topmost echelon of governance in the state in a cult- like domination, adding that though the members of this group in the cabinet are non-performing, they are still harboured in power positions as a payback for their role in the emergence of the government.

However, a closer diagnosis of the write -up brings a number of issues he raised to obvious deficit and contention, the most evident of them being the ascription of the emergence of Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, as the governor of the state, to the intriguing political manipulation of this group.  For the umpteen times, the factors that brought Shekarau to power cannot be ascribed to any man or any group of persons alone. Although, there were points of human intervention and expression, but on the overall, Malam Shekarau’s emergence was certainly divine, a feat made possible by the mercies of Allah.

But if we must look at some human indices and documented evidence preceding the said elections, questions must be asked as to where, when and what had happened to the celebrated Buhari factor that has often been cited as an influential attribute to the making of this government in 2003?   

It is also noteworthy that, back then, Kano was ready for change, and had only followed its destiny through Shekarau.  Indeed, to say that the making of Shekarau was as a result of the conscious effort of a sole elite group is an insult to the thousands of the poor, ordinary people of the state who vigilantly withstood the storm, a grave assault on the immeasurable strength of the numerous young men and women, who were caked in the sun in a bid to invent the Shekarau redemption process in the state.

Anybody who was in Kano State at this time knows that nobody gave candidate Shekarau any chance to defeat the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government of Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso. He was not a blue chip political investment for any of these groups simply because the prospect of his victory was not evident from the start. Typical of Nigerians, many of his friends and close confidants saw in his adventure a mission impossible and stayed afar.

It is true that a book launch was held in the state. But the launch trend is neither novel nor strange in the ancient city of Kano. Every other Saturday or Sunday, prose writers of different genres invite personalities to launch their books. Some of them, out of respect, extend invitation to the government of the day, while others mark their occasion without the representation of the government. The biography in question could have been in any of these classes. But many misguided analysts have tried in vain to link this launch to a purported move to endorse a candidate who would fly the ANPP flag in 2011.    

Governor Shekarau, in contrast, has since distanced himself from this suggestion, insisting that he stood for a level playing field. Speaking recently, during a media lunch, the governor made a categorical statement in respect of the fact that Mallam Ibrahim Khalil has been his friend of several years and would, no doubt, remain the same in the years to come. He, however, added that Malam Khalil had never told him of any ambition, neither has he endorsed his purported aspiration. He remarked that he had come across his posters on the streets, the same way others have seen it.

The writer’s claim about the distribution, and therefore, the number of this particular class of Kano indigenes in the present cabinet structure, is particularly worrisome. Either he is not properly educated on their membership in the government or he has elected to ignore the truth, none of which is an academic excuse for his failure to demonstrate grasp or bereft of knowledge. It might interest the public to hear that in the present administration, with a size of about 20 commissioners, only two of the Hadabiyya members are cabinet officers. These include the Commissioner for Budget and that of Science and Technology, none of whom could be fairly described as a major cabinet position by all standards; none of whom too could be labelled a non-performing commissioner by every stretch of imagination or assessment of Shekarau’s officers and aides. Rather, these two officers are the real workaholics in the administration and their contributions are immeasurable.

Also, only one of the members of this group was appointed into the list of board chairmen that was announced by the government recently, and sadly, this makes one wonder how the writer went about gathering his data. Or is this a clear case of mischief? This public error is made even more nauseating if we rightly agree that in a democracy, the Hudaibiyya group, too, deserves some representation in the government. The vain effort to condemn the group for unstated reasons and to conscript it out of the power walls is, therefore, disingenuous and regrettable.

The cosmopolitan face of the Shekarau administration is unrivalled by most state governments in the present dispensation. Here, in this government, all flowers bloom. There are different religious blends, there are persons from different geopolitical interests in Kano State and there are a combination of technocrats and the political class and the greatest beneficiary of the quality mix is the ordinary people in the state. There are even non indigenes in the cabinet, yet this writer would engage in the criminality of creating a conceited impression in a bid to plunder the character of this government.

Bebeji, an ANPP stalwart, wrote this piece from Kawaji quarters, in Kano State