By Bello Aminu Dangata
“The sanity of a good politician is known through comments made by others against or in his favour”
I finally arrived at the decision to briefly respond to the above-captioned article published in Politics Today (https://politicstoday.ng/sokoto-2023-how-the-moles-judases-in-apc-are-exposing-themselves/) on Saturday, June 25 2022. I am making this response ONLY because Yusuf Suleiman, who is the major target of Aminu Mohammed’s or his master’s attack, does not ordinarily join in dirty politics of lies, deceit or name-calling in order to gain cheap popularity. It is also to make some clarifications on certain claims about which Mohammed does not know, but on which, as a jobless journalist, he tried to sell to the public.
More again, I am responding because, unlike Mohammed, I am a stakeholder and therefore privy to the happenings in the pre, during and post 2019 governorship election in Sokoto state. But before then, let me start by advising Mohammed to look for a gainful job and not allow himself to be used in writing defamatory articles against people who have respect for him. Get a job because “an idle mind is a devil’s workshop”. These dirty politicians will always look for you in the belief that you will always do their bidding for a paltry ‘take home pay’ since you no longer have anything meaningful to do in order to earn a living. I am not sure this is worth while for you.
The antecedents of Yusuf Suleiman’s (Dan Amar Sokoto) sojourn in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are so clearly clean to the extent that while as its member, he had never been attacked by even rude politicians for whatever reason. And, after he left to join the All Progressives party (APC) in 2018, no member of the PDP till today ever attacked him for whatever reason. The sanity of a good politician is known through comments made by others for or against him. Yusuf Suleiman is a sane politician. He, as a Prince and the person that he naturally is, is not a treacherous or mischievious politician. He neither attacks nor instigates proxies to launch attacks on others.
It is true that Yusuf Suleiman’s decision to quit the APC is painful for its leaders in the state; it is true that his defection has created a vacuum so deep and wide that supporters of the party are expressing worry – worry that the APC has lost one of the veritable influencers, respected and respectable decision-makers, especially as the 2023 governorship election approaches. Dan Amar’s decision however is informed by so many factors some of which will be discussed here.
In Mohammed’s article, he referred to those that intend to defect to the PDP as “Judases”. However, in a short while, the people of Sokoto, particularly supporters of the APC, will soon know who the real “Judas Iscariot” is as far the leadership of the APC is concerned. But for now, Dan Amar has moved on.
Sole live-wire and 2019 election
One foolery dished out by the fool to the fooled is the statement that, “Long before now, the game plan has always been how to plot the fall of the APC under the leadership of Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko who has been the indefatigable, sole live-wire of the party in Sokoto.” While ‘live-wire connotes sole sponsor, I ask Mohammed if Wamakko told you who the sources of such funds meant to ‘sole-sponsor’ the party and by which he assumed the self-acclaimed “sole live-wire” are? Please, ask questions to know; maybe those who have served or are still serving in elective and appointive political offices will tell you how they are ‘milked’. I leave you to find the answers if you really care to, otherwise time will come when we shall help you.
Mohammed said, as copied to him by his master from the APC Elders WhatsApp Forum, that Dan Amar said he would no longer have “absolute loyalty” to and would leave the party. Yes, Yusuf Suleiman was only being the man that he has always been – an honest and non-hypocritical politician.
As to the question of Yusuf Suleiman’s value since he joined the APC, I urge Mohammed to ask Sen. Aliyu Wamakko why Yusuf Suleiman was appointed Director General of the Sokoto Guber Campaign; ask him whether Suleiman was given and mismanaged campaign funds. Specifically, ask Wamakko whether as Campaign DG, of the over N10 billion donations he received as campaign funds from individuals, he gave Yusuf Suleiman a dime to use for the purpose for which those monies were meant. Ask him if he did not receive donations to that tune in the bits of N3 billion, N2.5 billion, N2.5 billion, N2 billion, N2 billion with smaller donations like N100 million, N50 million. Ask him. If he fails to tell you, we will help in doing that soon. I repeat, ask Se. Wamakko if he gave Yusuf Suleiman a dime from the over N10 billion he received as contributions for the campaigns. During the campaigns, Yusuf Suleiman spent his personal money and yet, he had no value in the APC? Was Suleiman appointed as DG to spend his own money for Ahmed Aliyu’s campaign? Certainly, no!
On your master’s claim that Yusuf Suleiman sabotaged the APC in the rerun election in Kebbe local government in 2019 and that “there were strong allegations that ‘they compromised’ the APC victory in that inconclusive election and therefore played a major role in the party’s defeat,” these are simply baseless assumptions because Wamakko should have told you how Suleiman sabotaged that election in which monies meant for the election were not spent neither were they accounted for. Who here has become lacking in active consciousness? Treachery they call your brand of politics. I am happy today that I am alive to testify that were it not for the fact that Suleiman’s car was bulletproof, the four of us in the car would be killed on our way to Sokoto from Kebbe.
There is always a reason for winning or losing elections. APC’s loss was certainly not because Yusuf Suleiman has left the party but because of selfishness in some quarters. I take it however that Aminu Mohammed was a “Nothinger” and therefore not privy to the deliberate “inner-workings” that stood against the APC in the said election. I believe the members and supporters of the party in the state knew, at least, one open reason – that the party’s candidate was unpopular and that the campaign funds were not sufficiently disbursed as they should have been. Would we say that the party’s candidate was the people’s candidate? No!!
I ask the following questions for the people to find out:
- Why did Wamakko insist on a less popular governorship candidate in the 2019 election if not that he wanted the party to lose the election?
- Why would Wamakko receive over N10 billion campaign funds but only disbursed N2 billion for an election he wanted us to win?
- Why would Wamakko always think he has all the brains and that other party members and supporters cannot advise him?
- Are these not enough acts of sabotage and betrayal as well as reasons enough to make the party lose elections?
Indeed, with selfish politicians like Wamakko who is leading the APC cluelessly, failure will continue to be its destiny.
Dangata writes from Abuja
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