Barrister Samaila Idris, a legal practitioner, is the candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) for the Dass/Tafawa/Balewa/Bogoro federal constituency. He is billed to challenge the Speaker, House of Representatives,Yakubu Dogara who is running on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for a record fourth time. In this interview, the lawyer believes that the chances of the party to win the governorship elections are bright, having fielded an astute politician called Ambassador Ahmed Shuibu.
Excerpts
What are the chances of NNPP in Bauchi State?
Well, you are wrong to say that NNPP is a new party. NNPP is one of the oldest parties we have in Nigeria. Just that it is coming to Bauchi as a new party, because for the first time, it is making impact
in Bauchi and by God’s grace it has taken over the leadership of the opposition in Bauchi State, over and above the PDP, and I can assure you that it has chances of winning seats in Bauchi.
What are the chances of your governorship candidate, Shuibu?
You see, Ambassador Ahmed Shuibu, I call him Mr Credible, can be placed side by side with other candidates. You will discover that he is the most credible candidate Bauchi State has ever had. Without any fear of contradiction, I want to assure you that Shuibu is the most popular candidate in Bauchi State and the most popular among the candidates. For the first time, we are going to have a governor coming from the central. Shuibu is from Ningi. It has never happened before in Bauchi. So, I am telling you that NNPP is going to make history as far as the 2019 general elections in Bauchi state is concerned.
As a close ally to Ambassador Shuibu, what are his strengths? What is he bringing to the table?
Well, so many things. I won’t talk much on that because I know his manifesto is there. You will see what he is going to embark on, what his policy is all about. But I can assure you that he has a rich manifesto, richer than the others, and as for the party, I can assure you that human development, infrastructural development will be priorities.
Does your party have the needed structure to deliver?
Not just structure, the party has a concrete structure. If you say structure, it is an understatement as far as the NNPP is concerned. The party has a concrete structure over and above the ruling party itself.
So do you think your party’s candidate can defeat the incumbent governor?
Yes. Nobody has the power of divinity. It is exclusively that of God, and I can assure that we believe in God. Based on that, we stand a better chance of winning. We have the capacity to win. We believe in God.