Understanding the Sambo – Makarfi rift

By

Kadir Ahmed Abdulazeez

The above captioned article which appeared on the page ten of New Nigerian Newspaper of February 18, 2009 authored by no less a personality than Shu’aib Gimi made an interesting reading. Gimi in his characteristic mode of communication succinctly put his message across. If you are a regular reader of New Nigeria on Sunday, you must be familiar with the page seven captioned ‘Center Stage’ where Gimi Pointedly albeit weekly put some topical issues to bed.

Gimi like some columnists have a sense of analysis such that even if you do not agree with them you get better enlightened by their argument. And the article in question is no exception.

For a starter, let me state here that as many are wont to believe, this writer is not contracted by any of the ‘feuding groups’ to wash the others’ dirty linen in the public. As I often say, no amount of money can buy the ink of my pen to write in defense of anybody nay politicians. As regards Makarfi and Namadi, Mukhtar Sirajo and Umar Sani are respectively not being paid for nothing.

Gimi’s analysis of the so called ‘rift’ between the two leading politicians from Kaduna State is an eye opener but I would disagree with him that the ‘rift’ is between Makarfi and Namadi. From media publications and utterances, the ‘rift’ seems to be between politicians trying to curry favour from both Makarfi and Namadi by craving their attentions.

The only thing those who see themselves as belonging to the Namadi’s camp are holding against Makarfi was the interview he granted The Sun Newspaper where he allegedly said the Makarfi Town (Millenniun City) can not be completed in hundred years. This much the state PDP chairman Alhaji Ya’u Usman Jema’a said in an interview he granted Freedom Newspaper of 5 -15 February, 2009. The same thing was said by Umar Sani; the Media Adviser to Governor Namadi in an interview with selected group of journalist published by New Nigerian of Thursday February 19, 2009.

Just as stated by Gimi in his article, both Ya’u Jemma’a and Umar initially denied there was any rift between the two top guns. This much was consolidated when Namadi made a conspicuous appearance at the ceremony to honour Makarfi after his conferment of National honour. What a lot of people refused to understand is that the pronouncement allegedly by Barrister Jacob Nzamma; former Commisioner of Justice under Makarfi that Namadi has not achieved anything in almost two years and that he is marginalizing the Southern Kaduna, and also the utterance of Mr. Felix Hassan Hyet former SSG and immediate past Aviation Minister for state on the Kafanchan campus of the state university precipitated the exchange of words between the two camps. The recent interview granted by Jagaba Benjamin to The Sun Newspaper of Wednesday 19, February 2009 where he alleged that Makarfi in his 8 years in office marginalized the Southern Kaduna did not help issues.

But for anyone to say Makarfi marginalized the southern Kaduna in his 8 years as a governor is a height of propaganda taken beyond politics just as it will be untrue to say Namadi has not achieved any thing in almost two years. So both Jagaba and Nzamma are not only wrong but seem to have perfected the politics of ‘divide and rule make we chop even if our people suffer’ of most people from that part of the state.

Funny enough, apart from that alleged interview Senator Makarfi granted the Sun Newspaper, both himself and Governor Namadi have maintained silence.  While governor Namadi could be said to have total control over those purportedly speaking on his behalf because they are his appointees, that much could not be said of those in the so called Makarfi camp. Most, if not all seem to be speaking for self and not for the senator.

Another reason advanced for the illusionary rift is that some individuals in Namadi’s administration were leaking information to the senator. Having been at the rein of the state for 8 years and currently serving as senate chair on finance, I very much doubt if Senator Makarfi does not know far better about the state than all the commissioners combined. But even if that is not the case, governor Namadi has little or nothing to fear. After all, is it not for transparency and accountability sake that his administration through the Information and Home affairs Commissioner Saidu Adamu briefs the media on quarterly basis about the income, expenses and programmes of his government? Except they are not being sincere, I see no reason why they should be wary.

Another contradiction in Gimi’s article is the fact that he pointed out, rightly so, that all those who tried opposing Makarfi as a governor ended up working with and for him or kow-towed to him, but ended his article by saying if the governor could decipher the actions of the senator to the electorate, the senator is fighting a lost war or as a sitting governor, Namadi is more useful to the PDP and has a greater access to the leadership and in a better position to influence its decision than a former governor or half a dozen former governors put together.

First Gimi needs to remember that as far as PDP was concerned orders from above is more potent and renders state arm of the party impotent. Secondly he should understudy how Namadi emerged as a candidate within the intrigues that saw Senator Balat out. And by extension how Makarfi smoothly rode on Senator Tafida’s primary mandate and landed at the senate. Again if Gimi was right, today the story in Bauchi, Sokoto, Kano , Rivers, Ekiti, Imo and more recently Ondo would have been different. Of cause Gimi may say we are in the era of rule of law (?)

But let us assumed Gimi was right. How many former Governors are ‘up there’ with Makarfi, from the presidency to senate to the ministers, they are sure more than half a dozen and they all fraternized with Makarfi for eight years and are still doing so.

Somewhere above I refered to the so called rift between Namadi and Makarfi as illusionary because it is actually so; imagination of their supposed supporters baying for each others blood just to get the attention of the two men. Expectedly Mukhtar Sirajo has been mute, he seemed to have trodden that route and knows where it leads.

The so called rift brings to mind what transpired between then Governor Muhammed Ahmed Makarfi and Hamisu Abubakar Mairago pre-2003 election. Two friends of this writer supporting the two Politicians; one against another resulted in fist cuffs as a result of what they termed rift between Makarfi and Mairago. For a while they were not on a talking term until Lo and Behold the day the two politicians embraced and raised each others hands saying their rumored rift was the creation of their opponents and that they were together. As for my friends they buried their faces in their palms.

This time around, though this writer has no power of clairvoyance, the same situation may play out. Chances are that when the time comes for Namadi to while down his appointees, Makarfi may be an (UN) biased umpire come 2011, Makarfi and Namadi are going to trod the rooks and carmines of Kaduna state hand in glove campaigning for and with each other.

Like Gimi rightly pointed out in his article, virtually every individual in Namadi’s government are Makarfi’s bags and considering how the governor emerged and the role played his predecessor, he is also his boy. So if you think there is a rift between the two, you have another think coming.

The rift is between the ‘boy’ who think they can pander to the whims and caprices of the top two politicians just to get their attention. Both Senator Makarfi and Governor Namadi have too much at stake to pander to the whims and caprices of those political “boys”. They are bidding their times, the loser in this supposedly rift are the ‘boys’ as Gimi said the politics in Kaduna even before 2011 is already interesting but like the former PDP chairman in the state Alh. Yaro Makama Rigachukwu rightly coined in his days everything is “Daram Dam Dam”.