TWO ENDORSEMENTS THREATEN TARABA SOUTH’S HOPE OF PRODUCING GOVERNOR The recent endorsement of Minister of State for Niger Delta, Architect Darius Ishaku by General TY Danjuma as the sole candidate of Taraba South senatorial zone to contest for the governorship of Taraba State in 2015 on the PDP platform has sparked controversy capable of creating disharmony amongst people of the zone, our correspondent reports. Not long ago, General TY Danjuma gathered aspirants from the Taraba Southern Zone seeking to contest the 2015 governorship elections on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) platform and ‘anointed’ the Minister of State for Niger Delta, Architect Darius Ishaku, as the consensus candidate from the zone. He reportedly asked all other aspirants to sheath their ambitions for Ishaku. But this development is generating tension amongst some of the aspirants and stakeholders from the zone who view the endorsement as undemocratic and against the principles of equity and fairness. Political pundits say the controversy trailing the endorsement by TY Danjuma, if not properly managed, might again scuttle the quest for power shift to the zone which stakeholders from the zone have been yearning for over the years. Some of the aspirants who have so far declared their intention to contest the governorship of the state from the zone from the PDP are said to be opposed to Danjuma’s decision, saying it is not only unilateral but tantamount is to an imposition. From the inception of Taraba State in 1991, the people of the Southern zone comprising Wukari, Ibi, Donga, Ussa and Takum local government areas have been yearning to produce a governor but that dream is yet to materialise. Analysts say this is because there is lack of unity among politicians from the zone as they often fail to speak with one voice when it comes to the matter of producing a consensus candidate. This situation has, no doubt, given the northern and central senatorial zones political advantage over the southern zone. The northern zone produced Rev. Jolly Nyame who served as governor of the state for two terms between 1999 and 2007, while Danbaba Danfulani Suntai from the Central Zone was elected governor in 2007 and is currently serving his second term in office. Given the foregoing, the people of the Southern zone have been of the strong view that power shift to the zone is imperative and long overdue. Suntai had reportedly promised to ensure power shift to the Southern Zone by the end of his second term of office in 2015 before his plane crash in 2012. Irked by this development, some political stakeholders and elite from the southern zone, some months ago, began moves aimed at enhancing power shift to the zone come 2015. These political stakeholders were said to have held series of meetings in Takum, Wukari and Donga local government areas with a view to fostering unity and understanding amongst aspirants from the zone. Early in 2013, the stakeholders set up a body known as Southern Taraba Senate, charged with the responsibility of promoting peace and giving political direction for the zone. The body which membership was drawn from the five local government areas of the zone, is made up of elders and elite with an elder statesman, Chief Stephen Nyapuri, as its chairman. It was learnt that influential personalities such as General Danjuma, Senator Emmanuel Bwacha, Chief David Sabo Kente, Barrister Damian Dodo, Arct. Darius Ishaku and several others supported the setting up of this body and advised that religious leaders should be included in the body. In order to produce a consensus candidate that will run for the governorship seat from the zone, the group held a meeting with all those aspiring for the number one seat of the state from the zone and requested for the mandate to screen all the aspirants and come out with a consensus candidate for the zone. General Danjuma was among several political stakeholders from the zone that reportedly backed the decision of the group to scrutinise and come up with a sole candidate to avoid jeopardising the quest for power shift to the zone. Before the setting up of the body, there were 13 aspirants from the zone under the PDP, comprising four aspirants from Wukari; four from Donga; three from Takum and one each from Ussa and Ibi local government areas. The group was said to have interacted with and screened all those eyeing the governorship seat from the zone and eventually arrived at a consensus candidate. At a grand ceremony at Ichondi Multipurpose Hall in Wukari, headquarters of the local government, on March 7, 2014, the Southern Senators Forum announced Chief David Sabo Kente as a consensus candidate to represent the zone. Nyapuri said the decision to endorse the candidature of Kente was based on his track record of achievements, especially having used his foundation - the DSK Foundation - to touch millions of lives positively across the state and beyond. Nyapuri said: “There are over five aspirants in Southern Taraba, who are also good, but Kente stands out very clearly among them. He is a symbol of humility, a philanthropist and is courageous, such other qualities distinguished him from others.” With the endorsement of Chief David Sabo Kente, many were optimistic that the disunity amongst the numerous ethnic groups from the zone which has been robbing the zone of producing a governor for the state over the years was put to rest. But last month’s endorsement of Ishaku by Danjuma has drawn condemnation from some political stakeholders from the zone who are of the belief that Kente was a more popular candidate who will be saleable to the people of both North and Central zones. To some of the southern stakeholders, the endorsement of Ishaku by Danjuma has more to do with satisfying the interest of his kinsmen than the overall aspirations of the people of the zone. An aggrieved political stakeholder from the zone said: “If I may ask, why does Danjuma always select from Takum and his kinsmen alone? Danjuma nominated Chief Obadiah Ando from Takum to contest for governorship twice and lost, he nominated the same Ando for minister and he was appointed minister for water resources during Obasanjo and he again nominated him during Jonathan’s regime but he was rejected by members of the National Assembly from the zone and when that failed, T.Y replaced him with Ishaku, also from Takum.” Chief Kente and his supporters have distanced themselves from the decision of Danjuma, insisting Kente would prefer going to contest than step down for Ishaku. Director General of DSK Project 2015, Senator Abdulaziz Ibrahim, at a press conference in Jalingo recently said Gen. Danjuma was “misinformed” by “Abuja-based politicians” into endorsing Darius Ishaku against the earlier decision of the Southern group. “While we respect Gen. TY Danjuma as an elder statesman and distinguished military general of Taraba State extraction, we fear he has faulted as he allowed himself to be misdirected - through misinformation - by a group of politicians who are based in Abuja, who have no direct contact with the grassroots - our local populace in Taraba”, he said. Senator Ibrahim said it was unfortunate that Gen. Danjuma who had earlier accepted the outcome of the Southern Committee on the aspirants turned around to endorse another candidate. It was reliably gathered that Kente is billed to pick his PDP nomination form in Abuja this week. But General Danjuma, speaking through Taraba’s former Information Commissioner, Emmanuel Bello, said the emergence of Darius had the blessing of stakeholders from the Southern zone and that all other aspirants have thrown their weight behind him. Bello said: “The emergence of Arch. Ishaku Darius as the consensus candidate is a culmination of a series of interactive sessions by a high powered stakeholders committee led by respected elder statesman, Chief Seth Phillip Ikaa. “This committee was the only organ that had the blessing of a wide range of all the groups in the southern zone as the apex body saddled with responsibility of screening candidates from the zone who want to run for the office of governor. So any group outside of this is either a counterfeit or deceptive one aimed at scuttling the aspiration of the zone. Ikaa and his team spent weeks assessing the aspirants. All the aspirants agreed to abide by the outcome of the committee.” Political observers are now watching to see how the Southern Zone stakeholders would work towards closing their ranks on the issue of a consensus candidate in order to actualise their dream of having power shift to the zone come 2015.
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 09:39:05 +0000
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