How fight over my aspiration led to Kwankwaso’s exit from PDP – Jamu

Mohammed Jamu was the preferred candidate of the former governor of Kano State, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, for the North West zonal vice chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) position. Kwankwaso had left PDP for the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) while Jamo remained in the PDP. While featuring on Trust TV’s Daily Politics, Jamo spoke on the crisis rocking the PDP.

The general impression is that you were the cause of the crisis that rocked the PDP in the North West, this was over a year ago. What happened?

Well, the position of the National Vice Chairman of the PDP was zoned to Kano State specifically and at that time, Engr. Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso was the leader of the PDP in Kano. And it happened that I was nominated.

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I received a call from Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso notifying me that the leadership apparatus of the PDP in Kano had decided to field me as the candidate to fly the flag of the National Vice Chairmanship North West. I was shocked and surprised.

Why the surprise?

Sometimes when you are in politics, you might have your focus, target and ambitions but then suddenly when something else comes up, you will be shocked, so that was exactly what happened, but I received it in good faith and felt the leadership challenge of the whole North West was about to lie on my shoulders.

From that moment, consultations began because it was already two days to the election. We were supposed to be in Kaduna on a Saturday and I was notified about this position on Wednesday. So, the next day being Thursday I had to go to Kaduna for screening but some elements who felt otherwise disrupted the proceedings and the election did not hold.

From then on, till May this year, we have been having it back and forth. On three different occasions, the election was brought up but on all those occasions, something always disrupted it. And it was because of this that Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso decided to leave the PDP.

What happened and who changed the calculation?

Well, it was all about control. May be Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, the governor of Sokoto State, felt threatened that he was running for the office of the president and Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso was also running for the same office. So, if Kwankwaso had control of the leadership structure of the PDP in the North West, he would have an edge over him.  So, the only thing he could do was to put a spanner to the works at that particular time. As the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, during Mr Secondus’ time, he was the one that directed that only one form should be sold for all the positions.

Are all the positions democratic?

Well, sometimes if political parties want to reduce rancour, especially if the opposition party is trying to consolidate and take over power, some agreements can be reached and then some consensus can happen.

Within the state, if there is any position that has been fielded, the political party at that state level can hold an independent private election, and decide to field any candidate at that stage and then present only one person to the general fora.

So, the positions were allocated, and Aminu Waziri Tambuwal got the chairman of the party to allow him have one extra form by his position as the PDP Governor’s Forum chair. That was how it all started and then we had two forms.

Okay, so two forms for the National Vice Chairman for the North West…

Yes, two forms for the National Vice Chairman for the North West. That was exactly what happened and at the end of the day, Kwankwaso felt he didn’t like that.

But what happened when you people converged on Kaduna?

Yes, we converged, but before then, Kwankwaso had left the party. He left because he felt he wasn’t respected enough by the party, but we decided to stay and continue with the struggle.

The election held, and I would tell you that it was one of the most interesting elections I have witnessed. It was an election that I am so proud and happy that I participated in because I ran against the leadership, the leaders of the PDP in the North West.

What gave you the courage to go for the election despite what happened, even when you saw the signals?

Everybody was viewing it from a different angle, and I was seeing it from another angle. It took us one year before the election was held and within that year, I made a lot of friends across the North West, so I was confident that it was an election I can win.

Even though Kwankwaso had left the party, all the leaders of the North West felt that they should not give me an opportunity because so many things had happened. They called on me, even through my state chairman, and advised me to step down. They said they would consider putting me in the BoT because I would not get up to ten votes if I go for the election. But I told them I’m confident of winning, so I decided to stay and go for the election.

Did you get some votes?

Yes, I did. On that day, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Makarfi, Namadi Sambo, Sule Lamido, Shema, all the leaders, were there and gave directives that I should not be voted for.

But at the end of the day, the election was held. I got 313 votes.

Why did you remain in the PDP after your promoter, Kwankwaso, left?

At the time Engr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso wanted to leave the party, I was not part of the people that really wanted a change of party.

Why?

I just felt it was better at that time to remain within the PDP because I felt whatever we can achieve would be the yardstick for what I was seeing on ground because I became the centre of attraction of the crisis and the reason why he left, but what they were seeing was not what I was seeing.

There are allegations that he asked you and others to remain in the PDP in order to spoil the chances of the party, ahead of the 2023 election. How true is this allegation?

Well, His Excellency Engr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso started politics with his 32 teeth, likewise myself, it was just our path that crossed. He started because of what he believed, I also started because of my own belief. I know what is right and wrong for me. I am a strong Muslim who believes that wherever I am, I should be fair in all my actions in life. Nobody can ask me to remain somewhere to do his bidding, especially a bidding that will bring a party down, I have a lot at stake, I have my own future.

I believe in so many challenges which Nigeria is facing now and I have a strong belief that under the PDP, we have all it takes to get it right.

Party chieftains are expected to take something big to the table from their constituency. You are from Kano and the story out there is that Kwankwaso has taken a large chunk of PDP followership to NNPP. So, how are you going to campaign in Kano?

Well, that is something we have been complaining about. The defection of Engr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso is as a result of the deficiencies in leadership of Mr Iyorchia Ayu, the National Chairman of the party.

It was under Ayu’s watch that we lost Engr. Rabiu Kwankwaso, we lost Mr Peter Obi and today we are having a challenge of distrust between Governor Wike and the National Chairman of the party. So, these are issues of failed leadership within the party which need to be corrected.

You are said to be very close to the Rivers State governor. Why did you choose to align with Governor Wike?

Because we share a lot of things in common. Those things we share in common are the agitations and cries that there is something fundamentally wrong with how the party is being run at the national level, and that things have to be changed because if under the watch of a chairman we can be losing such potential leaders who have now become the biggest threat to the party, then there is a problem with the leadership of the party.

And if you noticed, after Alhaji Atiku Abubakar emerged, he was the only one visibly moving around the world, trying to pacify party members, which is not even supposed to be his responsibility.

Whose responsibility is it?

The chairman of the party and member of the NWC. But this national chairman was the man who went to Aminu Tambuwal and referred to him as the hero of the convention, showing his bias against other contestants.

But beyond the fairness you people are talking about, some are saying it is simply because Wike did not get the ticket, so he is using the resources available to him to give Atiku and Ayu problems, how true is this?

Let me tell you, it is not Wike. Wike just happens to be the most vocal person amongst us. But I am telling you, this is opposition that we all share.

Any time we have a meeting with Governor Wike and others, he even talks less. He only listens to what majority of the members of the group say and then maybe he echoes what everybody else is saying.

After Wike lost the election, he agreed and said it was his first outing. He said if he could get that number of votes in his first outing, then it was good for him, that he will wait another four years and then try again. He relaxed and forgot about everything, but they were the ones that went to look for his own trouble.