Katsina 2023 ‘ll be referendum on APC 

Finally, the D-Day was here. What is your take on the defection of Dr. Mustapha Inuwa and his teeming supporters to PDP?

I usually find it odd when people start saying bad things about others when people defect from one party to another but they become happy when someone defects into their party. So, I think one has to look at the circumstances surrounding what led to the defection before he or she starts speaking ill about anyone.

Dr. Mustapha Inuwa was a founding member of APC in Katsina; he was the pioneer chairman, he served the party diligently and I think the party should be happy that he had done what he did for the party.

Now, coming to the defection, I think they (critics of Inuwa) should look at the reason for his action. It’s not about the (primary) election, the election has come and gone and everybody has accepted it. The outcome is the issue, everyone going into an election should expect either to win or to loose. So, loosing is also part of the game. It’s not losing per se but the event that follows.

The winner takes all attitude is what they (Inuwa and the affected groups) have complained about from the beginning: the winner takes all attitude of the winner (of the gubernatorial primary). If he expects those people to follow him without any promise, or without having a say in the system, it’s like you telling me you are defeated, go home and rest; you are retired.

Any politician that wants to continue playing active politics will not wait for someone to tell him that he is retired. It is in civil service that you tell somebody to go home, you are retired but a politician continues to play politics until the ultimate time comes. So, if you are telling Mustapha Inuwa to go and retire, I think you are not been fair.

Let’s look at the circumstances he (Radda) won the election, Mustapha Inuwa came second and Abbas Masanawa came third. So, if you combine the votes of Mustapha and Abbas Masanawa, they covered more local governments than his. So, evidently, they should have a bigger stake in the system than him (Radda) because if you consider the local governments that Abbas and Mustapha won, they were more than he (Radda) won. They won almost 24 (out of 34) local government areas but the duo are the one that he don’t want to work with.

Mustapha has not been given the chance to participate, Mustapha has nothing for him again in Katsina State, he has done his ultimate best, that is being the SGS for three consecutive terms. The higher office after been an SGS is governor’s seat and he had aspired to be governor and he lost. So, there is nothing left for him to do in Katsina. You understand my point?

It’s not about him ( Mustapha), what about his teeming supporters? What about all the people who came with him, who supported him, who invested in him? What will he tell them? Okay, we have lost everybody should pack and leave?

I believe the party and government should have come in between to see that feelings all the followers of Mustapha and of course Abbas Masanawa were assuaged so that they get a sense of belonging in the system and feel very, very happy. This didn’t happen, all that they are telling Mustapha is: “Come, come and join us, or come to Abuja and become part of us.”

Of course, he has so many offers to become part of Jagaban’s team or become part of the party organ, that is he should come alone; he should not carry anybody. So, what about his people in Katsina? They should just keep quite and follow? If he is not given a chance to ask some of his people to participate, he is not given a chance to bring in his people to participate even in the campaign, that means he is not wanted.

One of the reasons he gave (for his defection) was that the person government proposed as running mate to the candidate (Radda) was rejected on the basis that the person was close to him (Mustapha). So, if that nominee was rejected on the basis that he was with Mustapha, it means anybody that was with Mustapha will not be accommodated in the system.

Q: Some critics have described Mustapha Inuwa as an ingrate and a betrayal of APC, saying he has benefitted more than any one from the party. What is your reaction to this?

A: That is a very foolish line of thought. Okay, what is the benefit of holding an office? Is holding an office a benefit? I don’t understand what they mean by being an ingrate. He was the SSG to Governor Aminu Bello Masari, if you know what the role of SSG is, you know he has played his role.

Anyway, somebody who has been the chairman of this party, who led the party to victory, who lost an eye in the cause of establishing the party, can still be called an ingrate? He lost one of his eyes in the cause of carrying everybody along.

The people in APC have never shown love to Mustapha, that is why they will talk like that about him; someone who built the party. Even if you built a state and the time comes for you to leave, you have to leave. If he has nothing else to do in APC, does that means he is an ingrate for leaving the party? So, all those that were commissioners in PDP administration that are now serving in APC government are

also ingrates because they are commissioners or serving in APC. Well, that is foolish talk. Masari was Speaker (of the House of Representatives) in PDP administration but is now in APC, does that also makes him an ingrate for leaving PDP and joining APC? I think Masari is an ingrate if that is the case. Yes! Honestly, that is my point because most of those people in APC now were in PDP. So, if you can call them ingrates for leaving PDP and coming to APC, then you can call Mustapha an ingrate for leaving APC for PDP.

Q: What are the prospects of the news comers in PDP and how will their defection boost the chances of PDP in 2023?

A: As believers, we believe that power belongs to God and whoever wins is the will if God. Mustapha in his statement yesterday said that PDP approached him to Join them and he asked them what would they offer to his people? He said there is nothing to be offered to him because he had reached his zenith in Katsina; he is not looking for anything personally in Katsina when they defect to PDP. He was asked to present what they wanted and everything his followers demanded in the formation of PDP government, in the event that the party wins the election, in setting up the government and even integrating his manifesto into PDP blueprint were all accepted. You see, they have something to gain in case PDP wins the election.

APC said, with or without him, they can go into the election and there will be no problem, let’s go into the (governorship) election and see what will happen. PDP has gained all his (Mustapha’s) supporters, if you were around yesterday, you would have seen the overzealousness of his supporters to follow him to wherever he is.

So, the election is going to come and its outcome we cannot predict; we will wait and what will happen.

Q: Indication is that you are heading to PDP, is that right?

A: You know we have people in APC and PDP, some of our friends are also contesting elections. It depends.

Q: For now, are you are stakeholder in APC?

A: No, I am not APC stakeholder, I know; may be because of my association with Mustapha, they have stopped calling me for meetings and I have been reduced to a spectator. Perhaps, I am being pushed out because Mustapha is defecting.

Q: How will you rate the chances of both political parties in the state in the forthcoming polls?

A: I think every decision now is the decision of the people of Katsina State: Whether they have been happy with APC in the last seven years or whether they have not, remains for us to see on election day.

All those brouhaha you see on the streets, in print or loud noise you hear on social media are just between us: the politicians. The electorate are whom we are going to face and we are to see how they will react on election day.

It depends on how both parties can convince us, the electorate, about what is there for us and what we see in both parties that will allow us to vote for their candidates.

I believe that APC has wounded many Nigerians; the trust and confidence which people had in APC were misplaced or not satisfactorily meant; there are not much dividends.

To me, I know because I have participated in so many elections since 1999, I know the mindset of our voters and that is what we have been saying in APC that there is so much hard work ahead.

It is not about internal politics, we know there are internal squabbles but the electorate are waiting for us; waiting for everybody.

So, let’s see how we face the electorate. By and large, we have made it money politics now and people are aware of how much is given to delegates or delegates have made. So, what are we going to to tell them? There is no much money so you couldn’t do anything? How did you get money to buy votes? So, it is going to be a very big tussle; we are definitely going to stay in one side. Definitely, I have to make up my mind where I am going to go but I have friends and associates to consult and I have to tell them my mind too.

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