UNLIKE the scenario in most of the states, where the contest for governorship seats revolve around two or three parties, the race in Bauchi is turning out a four horse race. There is the incumbent Governor, Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar of the All Progressives Congress(APC), Senator Bala Muhammad Abdulkadir of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); Ambassador Shuiabu Ahmad Adamu of the relatively unknown New Nigeria Peoples Party(NNPP) and Prof Mohammed Ali Pate’s People’s Redemption Party (PRP). The race to the Bauchi Government House promises to be interesting as each of the candidates easily boast of areas of firm support.

Bauchi State has always been the ‘Centre Point’ of Politics in Northern Nigeria because political history has it that the first Political Office in the entire Northern region was opened in Bauchi just as the first ever political demonstration against British imperialists in Nigeria was staged in Bauchi through the leadership of Malam Sa’adu Zungur of blessed memory.

The people of Bauchi have proven their political dexterity over the years. In many instances, they have rejected being taken for granted by any particular politician. In 2007 and 2015, the people turned away from electing Ahmed Mu’azu and Isa Yuguda as Senators. In the same years, the failed to elect the perceived stooges of the said former Governors. As the clock ticks on the 2019 elections, the people are once again armed with their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in readiness for opening of the polls on March 9, when they will elect their Governor and members of the House of Assembly.

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Governor Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar of APC

The governor, would seek to take advantage of the plurality of votes from his immediate Bauchi South Senatorial District, which accounts for 63 percent of the votes in the state. Indeed, some wards in Bauchi Metropolis have more voters than some Local Government Areas in the other zones.

The fact that Governor Abubakar hails from this thickly populated zone could come in handy any day.

For instance, recent statistics from the Independent National Electoral Commission indicates that the Governor’s Majidadi ‘B’Ward has about 56,000 registered voters. As such, the Governor may be able to take advantage of Bauchi/Katagum differences and capitalized on it.

It has however been observed that if the opposition could match him the governor’s campaign ‘eyeball for eyeball’, in this stronghold, the battle for re-election could be very tough. As such whoever wins this zone automatically wins the State.

Following the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to Bauchi, after the defection of some members of the National Assembly from the APC, the tempo of politics in the state has increased.

Governor Mohammed Abubakar has also increased the tempo of his consultations, visiting the remotest parts of the state to solicit of votes and commissioning projects. He has also upped the ante of reconciliation efforts by reaching out to those who sought the party’s tickets into various offices and lost. He was also said to have reached out to the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed and the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu. The Governor has consistently appealed to all stakeholders to turn out en masse and demonstrate the party’s invincibility in the state.

When asked how he intends to ensure victory in 2019, the governor recalled that in 2015, he made peace with all aspirants after the primaries and that he would do the same this time.

He exuded confidence about the election saying: “It has never crossed my mind that I am not coming back as the Governor in 2019 because my party has done so well to win the confidence of the electorate in the state. Considering what we have done, I don’t have any political setback.”

Senator Bala Muhammad of PDP

Senator Bala Mohammed was a civil servant in the state who rose to the rank of Assistant Director before he was appointed Special Assistant to former Governor Isa Yuguda when he was a Minister. He was elected Senator in 2007, became Minister in 2009, serving until 2015, when he contested the Governorship seat.

It is believed that he has enormous resources to pursue his governorship ambition, how well he deploys that for electoral success remains to be seen.

While flagging off its gubernatorial campaign in Bununu, headquarters of Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area, the PDP in the state said that the coast is now clear for it to reclaim the gubernatorial seat of the state.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara who led other prominent members of the party at the flagging off expressed optimism that with a free and fair election the PDP is coasting home to landslide victory in all of the elective offices in the 2019 election.

He said that his optimism was borne out of the fact that the electorate have discovered that the ruling APC is nothing but a failure. He therefore assured that the PDP will ensure equitable distribution of the scarce resources available for the country adding that Nigeria needs a functional and virile democracy devoid of ethno-religious sentiments.

The Speaker who alleged that the APC-led administration at all levels was working against his re-election, assured that he will not be disturbed by the development because according to him, “my concern is how to give my people positive representation and to develop the area.”

He also urged the electorate in Bauchi state to vote for all the candidates of the PDP during the general elections because according to him that is the only way to effect positive change in the country.

The governorship candidate of the PDP in Bauchi, Senator Bala Muhammad also assured that if elected as the Governor, his administration would ensure effective measures to boost the economy and security of the state pointing out that the APC-led administration has failed the people of the state.

He expressed confidence that the PDP was ready to win the general elections however, he warned that the party will resist any attempt to rig the general election, even as he called on the electoral umpires to ensure free and fair conduct of the elections.

Shuiabu Adamu of NNPP

The launch of this NNPP in Bauchi state was welcome with fanfare especially among the youths, who see its coming as the dawn of a new era. With Ambassador Shuiabu Ahmad Adamu as its gubernatorial candidate, the new party was able to shake the ground at inception in the state.

The people of Bauchi State welcomed the NNPP as the veritable alternative to the PDP and APC.

That possibly accounts for why the youths embraced the party expected to bring about paradigm change as well as generational shift. At its early stage, the Government termed the Party as an extended arm of the Students Union

Ambassador Shu’aibu Ahmed Adamu is seen as a candidate with wealth of experience in governance. He is believed to be a Technocrat with so much to contribute to his society. He was a Commissioner for Budget and Planning and later Secretary to the State Government during the twilight of the administration of former Governor Ahmed Adamu Mu’azu. The Ambassador is also believed to have what it takes to realize his ambition but he would need to deal with perceived links with former National Chairman of the PDP, Ahmed Mu’azu.

 Mohammed Ali Pate of the PRP

Having lost his gubernatorial bid under the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), a former Minister of State for Health, Professor Mohammed Ali Pate picked the ticket of the PRP. He has called on the electorate in the state to join him by voting the PRP on Saturday.

While making his manifesto public, the gubernatorial candidates of the PRP declared that Bauchi State was at cross-roads adding that the state needs to make a choice between two contrasting directions. He defined the directions thus “between truth versus falsehood and “justice versus oppression; progress versus backwardness; shared prosperity versus mass poverty; prudence versus corruption and light versus darkness.”

He said: “Our Party, PRP, and our candidacy, represents a clear choice for truth, justice, progress and prosperity. Its golden key will unlock the potentials of Bauchi State, so that all its citizens will enjoy decency, progress and prosperity.”

The former Minister further said: “My vision is for Bauchi State to become the best place to live, visit and work in the entire Federal Republic of Nigeria. We intend to achieve this vision by focusing on the agendas outlined in our Promise. We Promise to fight endemic extreme poverty in Bauchi State by increasing household incomes over time, Bi-Iznillah.”

He added that his government would focus on creating high-quality jobs for the unemployed youth, while empowering small-holder and large-scale farmers to boost their productivity and access to markets as well as build agro-industrial infrastructure, including dams and irrigation schemes.

As the four leading candidates slug it out for the Bauchi Government House, the battle remains a straight fight between popular political structures and popular names. The people of Bauchi would decide which comes top on Saturday.

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