The recent dissolution of the Kaduna State Executive Council by Governor Ramallan Yero and last week’s impeachment of Usman Gangara as the Speaker of the State House of Assembly may just be the beginning in the battle for the control of the state politics ahead the 2015 elections, reports Assistant Editor, Remi Adelowo
Ten months after he was inaugurated as the helmsman of Kaduna State, Governor Ramallan Yero, finally dissolved the cabinet he inherited from his former boss, Patrick Yakowa, who died in a plane crash in December last year.
The move was not unexpected if the undercurrents that prevailed within the state chapter of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last few months were anything to go by.
Months before the dissolution was announced by Yero, words had been rife among political actors in the state that Yero had resolved to sack all the commissioners, special advisers and other political appointees to form a new team in ‘his own image.’
Shortly after he was sworn-in, Yero had accused some key government officials of allegedly disrespecting him while he served as deputy governor.
Days later, he relieved five key aides of Yakowa of their appointments. They included the Secretary to the State Government, Lawal Samaila Abdullahi; the Chief of Staff of the Government House, Abokie Galadima; Senior Special Assistant (Media), Reuben Buhari; Principal Private Secretary to Yakowa, Yonna Allamagni and the Political Adviser, Engr. Bala.
Apponted as the new SSG is Hamza Ishaq Danmahawayi, while Yahaya Aminu was made the new Chief of Staff. Other appointments are Ahmed Maiyaki as the Director-General, Media and Publicity; Aliyu Sumaila as the Principal Private Secretary with Garba Madami made the new Political Adviser.
The change of these key aides, who are considered as the closest to the governor, had fueled speculation that it was only a matter of time before other political appointees; particularly commissioners, who were appointed by Yakowa would be weeded out of the system.
The Nation gathered that some leaders of the PDP and loyalists of the governor had impressed it on him that the government’s lack lustre performance was due to the alleged disloyalty of the former commissioners to discredit the governor and frustrate his alleged re-election ambition in 2015.
And just as many people in the state were still coming to terms with the sack of Yakowa’s loyalists, came the unexpected impeachent of the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Usman Muazu Gangara; his deputy, Dr. Dugara Matoh and all principal officers of the House. In addition, all the standing committees of the House were dissolved.
The impeachment exercise, which was carried out by 19 out of the 34-member House, witnessed the election of a new Speaker and Deputy Speaker in the persons of Alhaji Shehu Tahir and Peter Adamu, respectively.
While the former Speaker was still raising issues on the propriety and illegality of his impeachment, the governor, within hours, congratulated the new leadership of the House while also promising the state government’s cooperation.
Sources disclosed that the impeachment of the House leaders was the climax in the governor’s game plan to establish a new political structure that will be wholly loyal to him and his political godfather, Vice President Namadi Sambo.
The ‘Operation Weed Out Yakowa loyalists’ became more imperative following reports at the disposal of the governor that some elements in government and the state PDP were plotting to work against the re-election of Yero, who is alleged to be eyeing another term in office.
But beyond the moves to erase all the vestiges of Yakowa from the state’s political landscape, The Nation gathered that the present political developments in the state in recent times may not be unconnected to an alleged cold war between Vice President Namadi Sambo (who is also a former governor of the state) and his predecessor, Ahmed Makarfi, currently a serving senator.
Among other things, Makarfi is being accused of opposing Yero’s return to office in 2015. There are unconfirmed reports that the senator favours the return of power back to the Kaduna South Senatorial zone where the late Yakowa hailed from in 2015, a decision that has angered the governor’s camp.
Both Sambo and Makarfi were once close political allies. In 2007, Makarfi handed over to Sambo, an architect and a businesssman, to the alleged displeasure of key political stakeholders in the state, who viewed Sambo as an outsider in the PDP and the government.
However, all was well between the duo until 2010. Following the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua and his replacement by the then Vice President, Goodluck Jonathan, the search for a new vice president, which had Makarfi strongly favoured by some Northern political leaders, took a dramatic twist when Jonathan instead chose Sambo.
Though the two leaders have managed to keep their frosty relationship out of public glare, sources allege that Sambo, desperate to dispel notions of having a weak political base in the state, is using the advantage of having his political godson as the governor to stamp his authority as the defacto political leader of the state.
Battle for Kaduna South
The battle for the soul of Kaduna politics, according to sources, is also a fall-out of the appointment of Ambassador Nuhu Bajoga as Governor Yero’s deputy last year.
Bajoga’s choice was opposed to by the youth of Kaduna South, who alleged that the 66-years old politician was too old to advance the interests of the zone.
The Nation gathered that elders of the zone, led by Major Gen. Zamani Lekwot (retd), had recommended three nominees, which included a former Minister of State for Power, Nuhu Wyet, late Yakowa’s esrtwhile Chief of Staff, Abokie Galadima and Bajoga.
According to sources, the governor reportedly settled for Bajoga who is not likely to rock the boat like the much younger Wyet and Galadima, who was overlooked for the job based on his closeness to Yakowa.
Presently, there are fears within the PDP in the state, of the likelihood of the Kaduna South aligning with the major opposition party, All Progressives Congress (APC), in the 2015 general elections.
Since the advent of the political dispensation in 1999, the PDP had garnered bloc votes from the zone unlike its performance in Kaduna North. This factor has largely contributed to the party’s victory in the state from 1999 till date.
If the APC eventually picks its 2015 governorship candidate from the Kaduna South, political watchers opine that it would be difficult for elders in the zone to convince their followers to pitch their tents with the PDP.
This factor, coupled with the internal crisis in the PDP, which led some members to recently declare support for the Abubakar Baraje-led faction of the party will, no doubt, constitute major obstacles for Ramallah Yero to retain his position in 2015.
