Since 2015, when the heightened clamour for a change in the leadership of Nigeria birthed, in both character and content, a political revolution that simultaneously swept away the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and enthroned the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the ruling party, the political landscape and governance style have never been the same. In the North-west Zone that is made up of Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi states, the effectiveness and outcomes of the struggle were most pronounced.
APC’s victory in all those states in 2015, even with the relative setback it suffered in 2019, has continued to indicate its dominance in the zone. There is a full acknowledgement of the fact that North-West is a place in which the APC, especially if its movers, are genuinely at work, will continue to have a huge edge over all the other parties.
The recent meeting of the party’s stakeholders in the North-west which took place in Kaduna during which it paraded a lot of its best in terms of personalities and programmes was an evidence of the resoluteness of its drivers in the zone. It was one of the loudest statements ever made by the party and which has now re-enforced the hope for its victory at all levels in 2027.
As the chief host of the meeting, Governor Uba Sani, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) and Co-ordinating Governor of the APC in the North-west, displayed unrivalled determination to further strengthen the party as a way of boosting the confidence of its members. He showed adequate capacity for the mobilisation of key figures of the zone, including its National Chairman, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas; Deputy President of the Senate, AbdulMumini Barau Jibrin; Governors of the APC-controlled states; ministers and all other high-ranking members occupying elective or appointive positions or serving in the executive committees of the party at the relevant levels, all of whom excitedly thronged Kaduna for the event.
Although APC is unarguably dominant in the North-west, the stakeholders meeting co-ordinated by Governor Sani has now made it a lot stronger and livelier with most of the members investing immense hope in its future. His position as the APC’s coordinating governor in the North-west has bestowed on him the powers to ensure that it works very well in the zone.
In other words, Governor Sani now effectively functions as the biggest mover and shaker of APC in the North-west in whom all the other stakeholders have confidence and to whom they therefore defer. In both spheres of governance and politicking he exemplifies commitment to the realisation of identified goals, which makes him a trusted party man in the eyes of the elders, reliable partner of the other APC governors, role model for younger members and inspiring leader for everybody in the zone and, by extension, the North.
The adoption of President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the consensus candidate of the APC for 2027 presidential election by all the participants at the stakeholders’ meeting is both a clear product of his efforts and an expression of the belief in the policies of the Tinubu administration. Having come first in this regard, the North-west stakeholders under Governor Uba Sani have established an unbreakable record.
…Gimi contributed this piece from Kaduna via [email protected]