“Mere good governance is not enough; it has to be pro-people and pro-active. Good governance is putting people at the centre of development process.” 

—Narendra Modi

 

By Daniel Kanu

 

After all the political intrigues, deceit, frictions, conflicts, crude manipulations and sophisticated powerplay, Alhaji  Abdullahi Adamu,  popularly called the “Bridge”, finally emerged the new national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The ruling party held its national convention on March 26, after controversies and two postponements.

Having been named President Muhammadu Buhari’s anointed candidate as his close ally, the former two-term governor of Nasarawa State, emerged the party’s consensus candidate after six other aspirants reluctantly withdrew from the race hours into the convention.

 It was crystal clear that prior to the Saturday of the APC convention, the party was sitting on a knife-edge with the balance tilting towards failure and implosion given the fact that APC seemed to have transformed into a party perpetually at war with itself.

The question in the mouth of most Nigerians is that now the APC has succeeded in conducting a peaceful convention and Buhari finally actively positioned himself as the de facto “owner” of the party with the questionable right to handpick candidates for elective positions via consensus, what can Abdullahi Adamu really do outside Buhari’s control?

Adamu has promised to give his best in his service to the party, especially on the possible challenges his team may face as the party prepares for the 2023 general polls.

As Adamu acknowledged, “we have a major event that is going to test the water on how stable we are as a party. That is the general election that is coming and how we will win it”.

Today as things stand, Nigerians are worried and angry as to how insecurity seems to have overwhelmed even the moderate achievements of the APC government with impunity.

This no doubt, may speak against the party at the 2023 polls unless Adamu and his team do something to change the sad narrative.

Political pundits say that the first step Adamu should take is to gain the trust and confidence of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, the most powerful block in the party and indeed the ones that played a key role in the ouster of former Chairmen, John Oyegun and Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

As chairman of the reconciliation committee before his selection, Adamu will have to redouble his efforts at forging cohesion and peace in the party.

There is no doubt that APC has transformed into a big party characterised by diverse interests and cleavages.

How Adamu’s leadership resolves contending conflicts would point to the prospects of harmony, confidence building and renewal of fidelity to the platform by aggrieved chieftains.

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After the convention, attention has shifted to the presidential primaries. Will APC adopt zoning? Would there be micro-zoning? Will the party adopt consensus? These are critical issues that can make or mar the party.

There is no doubt that APC brought to the national conventions many issues that ought to have been settled at home; at state and regional levels, before party leaders. All this will be litmus test for Adamu.

But there seems to be this badge of crisis of moral burden trailing Adamu having been part and parcel of the opposition PDP, both as governor and even one-time Secretary, Board of Trustees (BOT) of the party.  So, how far can he go with the challenges ahead and be trusted?

How is he sure he will not go the way of others before him bearing in mind that the chairman who led the APC to prosecute the 2019 electoral battles, Comrade Oshiomhole was ignominiously removed from office, just as Oyegun, was harassed out of office.

There are some who contend that within the ambit of the extremely low standards and benchmarks political parties in Nigeria have set for themselves, it is uncertain if the new APC helmsman will spring any positive surprise.

Only time will tell.

Abdullahi Adamu, was born in Keffi, Nasarawa State on July 23, 1946.

He attended Abdu Zanga Primary School, Keffi and completed it at the Laminga Senior Primary School in 1959.

He moved to the Government Secondary School, Makurdi, Benue State between 1960 and 1962 and thereafter to the Government Technical College, Bukuru, Plateau State from 1962 to 1965.

Adamu obtained the Ordinary National Diploma (OND) in Building and Civil Engineering from the Kaduna Polytechnic in 1968 and the Higher National Diploma from the same institution in 1971.

His began his political career in 1977 when he was elected a member of the Constituent Assembly, which drafted the 1979 Constitution.

Upon the collapse of the Second Republic in 1983,  Adamu went to the University of Jos to study law as a part-time student . He was through with his studies by 1992 and enrolled in the Nigeria Law School, Lagos.

In 1994, Adamu was appointed a member of the National Constitutional Conference convoked by the military administration of Sani Abacha.

In 1999, following the restoration of democracy in Nigeria, he became a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He contested and won the governorship election of Nasarawa State. He was governor for eight years between May 1999 and 2007.

In 2007, the year he left office, the former governor won election into the Senate on PDP’s platform to represent Nasarawa West Senatorial District in 2007.

On January 29, 2014, he and 10 other PDP senators joined the APC.

He holds the traditional titles of Sarkin Yakin Keffi and Aare Obateru of the Source, Ife, Osun State.