FRANCIS AGBO writes on the political ambition of Mohammed Buba Marwa, governorship candidate of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in Adamawa State for tomorrow’s polls.
He is respected in the country. In Borno and Lagos states where he had held sway as military administrator, Brigadier-General Mohammed Buba Marwa (rtd) is still celebrated as an achiever per excellence. He reportedly turned around the fortunes of the states in the critical sectors of the economy. At a period when Lagosians slept with one eye closed, Marwa set up and funded a security outfit code-named Operation Sweepwhich protected lives and property.
As Nigerian High Commissioner to South Africa, Marwa represented the country well by redefining diplomacy and repositioning the battered image of Nigeria through the re-branding campaign.
He is currently the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) governorship candidate in Adamawa State. The thinking in some quarters is that though Nigerians appreciate his exploits in the military and South Africa but most people appear to be oblivious of Marwa’s contribution to the cause of jurisprudence, justice, rule of law and constitutionalism as exemplified by his suit at the Supreme Court which ultimately led to the sack of five governors last month.
LEADERSHIP checks show that the landmark verdicthas deepened Nigeria’s democracy. But the irony, according to observers, is that Marwa, the man behind the success is not celebrated alongside the verdict.
The former military administrator had gone to court last year following the confusion trailing the tenures of ex- Governors Ibrahim Idris (Kogi); Timipre Sylva (Bayelsa), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa); Aliyu Wammako ( Sokoto) and Liyel Imoke (Cross River).
They had rigged themselves to power in 2007.? The Court of Appeal annulled their victories; they still won the rerun polls only for them to get the court to elongate their tenure by a year in contravention of section 180 (2) of the 1999 Constitution.
This prompted a Marwa who was eyeing Yola government house to seek the intervention of the appellate court which refused to join him as a party.
In its ruling delivered by Justice Regina Nwodo, the Court of Appeal held that Marwa and the CPC did not show legally recognized interest to be joined in the suit and accordingly dismissed it. The appellate court held that since it had declined Marwa the leave to join in the case, the other prayers also failed. Marwa was represented byMr. Ifedayo Adams Adedipe (SAN) and Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) as lead counsel.
Olanipekun had told the court that Marwa’s ambition of becoming the governor of Adamawa State in 2011 had been dampened due to the Federal High Court decision that gave impetus to the five governors’ bid to extend their tenure beyond May 29, 2011.
Not known for giving up, Marwa approached the Supreme Court and secured the nod of the apex court to appeal the judgment of the lower court. On July 5, 2011, the apex court asked Marwa to file his briefs so that the appeal could be determined before the elongated tenure of the governors expired.
In his appeal titled- Brig-Gen Buba Marwa v. Admiral Murtala Nyako (SC 141/2011), Marwa contended that both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal in Abuja were wrong when they held that the affected governors were entitled to stay in office beyond May 29, 2011.
He urged their lordships to hold that the tenure of the governors had expired on May 29 last year. And INEC aligned with Marwa. INEC’s lawyer, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), noted that the Appeal Court was wrong when they held that the time already spent in office by the governors should not be contemplated when computing the period of four years which the governors were entitled to.
The commission held that the judgment was given in disregard to section 180 (2) of the 1999 Constitution which stipulates that a governor should vacate office at the expiration of four years, noting that their lordships failed to validate the initial oath of office taken by the governors.
INEC claimed that the nullification of the election after the initial oath did not have the effect of nullifying the oath of office previously taken by them.
The commission also faulted the Appeal Court’s justices’ reliance on the case of Peter Obi v. INEC (2007)11 NWLR Part 1046. It noted that the case did not involve a governor who was re-elected after his initial return was set aside.
After series of adjournments, the apex court delivered a landmark judgement sacking the five governors on grounds that their tenures had expired on May 29 last year and urged them to vacate office immediately.
On Adamawa in particular, Justice Olufunlola Adekeye said, “Consequently, with the outcome of these appeals; the 1st respondent in Suit No S.C 141/2011 is ordered to vacate office immediately while the Speaker of the Adamawa House of Assembly shall be sworn in as Acting Governor of Adamawa State in line with section 191 (2) of the Constitution . INEC shall conduct an election within three months to fill the vacancy in office”.
As the people of Adamawa file out to elect their governor tomorrow, Marwa, is a force to contend with.? LEADERSHIP checks show that the race will be a two- course- race; between him and the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Nyako.
This is not to say that analysts are unmindful of the of other candidates like the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) candidate, Engr. Markus Gundiri. But the pendulum is likely to swing in favour of Nyako or Marwa. Why? Both men are affluent and influential in Adamawa. Aside being retired military tacticians, they are heavy weight politicians with a horde of supporters across the state. And most importantly, their platforms: PDP and CPC are the only parties with tentacles spread across the nooks and crannies of Adamawa
Though the line-up of heavy weights behind Nyako outweighs that of Marwa but the masses on whose thighs sovereignty lies seem to be solidly behind the former high commissioner. His track record as military administrator and his role in the apex court verdict, political analysts contend, give Marwa a head start over Nyako who is believed to have under-performed both as Military Governor of Niger State and as Adamawa State Governor.
But what Nyako lacks in track record, he makes it up with deeper wallet and support base of godfathers. Prominent among the big names backing him are former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, former governor of defunct Gongola State and PDP national chairmanship aspirant, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur. The thinking of the Nyako camp is that with Atiku and Tukur united for him, clinching a second term will be a cake walk.
To make Nyako’s re-election stand on solid foundation, the PDP has not only smoothened the relationship of Atiku and Tukur but have also gone a step further to reconcile Obasanjo and Atiku.
A PDP behemoth who craved for anonymity puts it thus: ‘‘The re-election of Nyako is of paramount interest to PDP and that is why we don’t want to leave any stone unturned in this election. And the first thing we did was to reconcile all the critical stakeholders with the governor. After that, he brokered a truce between all the heavy weights so as to put our house in order, this, we have done. And the climax of it was the reconciliation of the party’s Board of Trustees Chairman and former president of Nigeria, General Olusegun Obasanjo.’’
However, his detractors posit that since the governor has fallen apart with his erstwhile god-father and immediate past- senator, Professor Jibrilaminu, Nyako’s ambition may hit the rocks. Analysts believe that with Alhaji Ahmadu Umoru Sinciri in- charge as acting governor, Nyako is likely not to have full control of the repressive stateapparatus and state funds to manipulate the electoral process.
Mallam Maijama Adamu, former Chief Press Secretary to Nyako said only God will stop his former boss from winning tomorrow’s polls.
But those who insist that Marwa will win believe his track record and the larger-than-life image of the CPC? presidential candidate and former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), are enough to catapult? him to power.
The large Muslim community in the state was agog the last time Buhari stormed Yola to shore up support for Marwa. Aside the Buhari support, the Christian community is also comfortable with Marwa who is seen as liberal and non-fanatical; a characteristic many Christians hardly attribute to the governor popularly called Baba Magoro.
Interestingly, both Nyako and Marwa are not new to taking on each other. Marwa was an aspirant in the PDP before he was tactically forced out by the deft manipulation of the party structure by Nyako who was bent on controlling the party leadership ahead of the primary election.
And the good general that Marwa was, refused to remain in the party to suffer pre-mediated defeat and hence his defection to CPC. If it were to be in their military days where it is a taboo for a junior officer to take on superiors, Marwa wouldn’t have contemplated challenging Nyako who was his boss. Now that both men have thrown their hats into the ring, who is likely to take the day? The people of Adamawa will decide.