A report have emerge claiming Nigeria’s First Lady, Aisha Buhari, is making plans to instal her younger brother, Mohammed Halilu Modi, as the next governor of Adamawa State.
This, according to a report, is causing dissatisfaction among chieftians of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the northeast state.
Aisah Buhari, who is a very influential member of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration, enjoys the backing of the Chairman of the APC Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), Governor Malam Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State.
It was gathered that a former Vice-Chairman, North-East Zone, Mustapha Salihu, and the Financial Secretary of the party, Saidu Naira, are allegedly working to facilitate the emergence of the First Lady’s brother as the governorship candidate of the APC in the state.
According to sources, Buhari’s wife recently sent Modi to the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, near Jos, Plateau State, to study in other to prepare him for the governorship seat.
First Lady Aisha Buhari
At the just-concluded Local Government Congresses of the APC in the state, the First Lady reportedly hijacked the party structure from perceived political opponents of her brother such as Senator Dahiru Binani, Senator Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow (former Governor of the state) and Senator Ishaku Abbo (APC-Adamawa North).
“There is a serious problem brewing at the Adamawa APC, which if not resolved quickly, may cost the party the seat of governor again like it did in 2019,” a source told Sahara Reporters.
“Recall that in 2019, the party lost the governorship contest to the incumbent and member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, Mr Ahmadu Fintiri, over this same power tussle between Mrs Buhari, Bindow, Binani and other opponents in the quest to make her brother become the governor.
“In the same vein, security chiefs in the state were threatened with sack if they did not cooperate by facilitating Modi’s aspiration.”
The first casualty of the threat was the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Aliyu Adamu Alhaji, who was replaced by a new CP, Mr Mohammed Ahmed Barde.
The redeployed CP was said to have insisted on fully supervising the congresses in Yola South.
As a result, the First Lady’s candidate lost to Senator Binani’s candidate.
“As things stand today, all the heads of federal agencies in the state, whose line of duty relate to supervising party congresses, are living in fear of the unknown, should they attempt to work against the interest of the First Lady’s brother“, another party official said.
Sources further revealed that most of the names from the ward and local government congresses sent to the national secretariat of the APC were altered by the quartet in Abuja, which led to aeries of litigations challenging the alterations.
Aisha, who is not hiding the fact of her deep involvement in the ongoing manipulation, was quoted to have said, “I will not repeat the mistake of 2019 where we allowed Governor Bindow to have total control of the party to the disadvantage of many of us.”
Sources said Aisha had vowed that she could not afford to leave office with her husband in 2023 without any of her family members taking over Adamawa State in a bid to sustain their political relevance in the years ahead.
“Except something is done urgently to amicably resolve the grievances from the ward and local government congresses, especially that the state congress is close by, many stakeholders may defect to the PDP.
“If this is allowed to happen, it is the APC that will be the big loser again in 2023, just like it happened in 2019. The way they are going, they can only help the PDP and governor Fintiri to win re-election in 2023”, a top party official stated.
This article was originally published on Naija News