BY BENJAMIN JIBRIN, KADUNA
Unless there is direct divine intervention, the people of Southern Kaduna, in Kaduna State, may never again produce a Governor, not to talk of the 2023 governorship elections, a political activist from the area, Mr Modacai Ibrahim, has said.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Global Upfront News (GUN), Mr Ibrahim blamed the predicament on the deliberate unfavourable political arrangement in the State, especially the delineation of polling units in the Southern Kaduna Senatorial zone.
Since the creation of the present Kaduna State in 1987, only the late Mr Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, has been elected Governor of the State from the Southern Kaduna axis. But this was made possible by the elevation of the then Governor, Namadi Sambo, to the position of Vice President by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Mr Ibrahim said that though it appears early to project the race for 2023 general elections, with Governor Nasiru el-Rufai expected to be still in office by then, ambitious Southern Kaduna politician should forget the race.
First, he noted that Governor el-Rufai, as a smart politician “who did what was necessary for him to succeed and sustain himself in the 2019 elections,” would, “all things being equal, want his right hand man to take over from him, for obvious reason not far from protecting him.”
Ibrahim, a former State House of Assembly aspirant, advised that “Southern Kaduna, as far as Governorship race is concerned, should forget about getting the ticket in 2023, 2027 including 203.”
According to him, “from the day Lere local government was removed from Southern Kaduna and taken to Zone One, Giwa local Government was removed from Zone one and taken to Zone Two, Kachia was removed from Zone Two and taken to Zone Three, I told myself that Southern Kaduna people are finished politically.
“Yakowa was Governor because he was Deputy to Namadi Sambo and Namadi Sambo was picked as Vice President. So, it was a constitutional evolution. Look at what happened in 2011 election. How did he go? He won but was it a smooth sail? It was a narrow win. If you enter Tudunwada here, in one Street, you will see almost three polling units.
“Go to Gonigora, Karatudun, we have only one polling unit near Kakawu. The whole of Karatudu, Karatudu New Extension, Federal Housing, Ngwa Tanko and Buwaya vote in one place. In Karatudu new extension, there were over 5,000 houses. Let us assume in each of the house they were two occupants. How many polling units is that? A polling unit is 500 people.
“I have not talked of Karatutu village itself, Angwa Sori and Angwan Tanko. I have not talked about the new and old Buwaya. Each of the new settlements have nothing less than ten, ten thousand people of voting age but all that places put together has only one polling unit. But if you enter Abeokuta road by Jos road, you will find many polling units. Some of them don’t even have up to 300 voters and they will bring you 500 votes. This is the case in Zone One and Two. But let me give you a typical example with my local government where you have 241 polling units in Kachia local government as a whole and Kachia has 12 wards.
“How many wards are there in Kaduna South” Find out how many polling units do they have in Kaduna South.” Find out how many wards are in Kaduna North. How many polling units are in Kaduna North as compare to the poling units in Kachia local government? Go to my own ward Sabon Sarikin, my village is qualified to have three polling units. Sabon Sarikin3 village is qualified to have up to 10. But they have only three polling units.
“Jaban Kogo is qualified to have up to seven polling units but they have just two. I can go on and on. Can you see the technical marginalization in polling unit delineation? The Nigerian Constitution says that there should be Constituency delineation after every ten years of democratic practice. And we have now had 20years of democratic practice. By now we supposed to have two delineation exercises but none has been carried out.”
Speaking further, he opined: “Until Lere is brought back to Southern Kaduna, Kachia is brought back to Central Zone and Giwa is taken back to Zone One, we shall continue to be political slaves in Kaduna State, unless miracle happens and Southern Kaduna gets its own State. But the way things are going, I do not see Southern Kaduna getting our own State in our lives time and so, only God Almighty can make a Southern Kaduna man win election to become Governor of Kaduna State unless if the people of Northern Kaduna, when God touches their hearts, they decide to support us.”
