‘Rebel’ lawmakers who won’t return

The final results of the 2019 general elections have shown that defections of some All Progressives Congress (APC) federal lawmakers to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had no effect on the ruling party’s electoral fortune. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines how some of the defectors fared in the election.

Majority of senators and members of the House of Representatives who dumped the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2019 general elections have failed in their bid to return to the 9th National Assembly.

Some of them were defeated at the poll by APC candidates. They include Senate President Bukola Saraki, Senators Suleiman Nazif, Monsurat Sunmonu, Barnabas Gemade, Abdul Azeez Murtala Nyako, Rafiu Salami and Ubale Shittu. Those that didn’t seek re-election include Senators Rabiu Kwankwaso, Isa Misau and Usman Nafada.

Those in the House of Representatives that contested on the platform of the PDP and lost include Aminu Shagari and Razaq Atunwa. Other members that defected along with them were Sani Rano, Ali Madoki, Hassan Saleh, Shehu Usman, Danburam Nuhu Abubakar, Tope Olayinka, Ahman Pategi, Samuel Udende, Abubakar Kannike, Abdu Samad Dasuki and Bode Ayorinde.

Justifying their defection in July 2018, the lawmakers said the decision was taken after due consultation with their constituents and stakeholders in their constituencies, in proper recognition of Section 61(1) (d) of the 1999 Constitution, and for the fact that the APC then was factionalised.

In actual fact, they were aggrieved PDP members that formed the so-called ‘new PDP’ in 2014 and later merged with the APC towards the build-up to the 2015 general elections. Again in 2018, they contrived another crisis and formed what they called the ‘reformed APC’ to create the impression that there was crisis within the party. Analysts said they were forced to return to their former political party because they had failed to hijack the APC machinery. The defection did not affect APC status, as it maintained majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Saraki

At a meeting held with Kwara PDP stakeholders in August 2018, Saraki predicted that his new party would win the 2019 presidential election. He said: “I am confident that PDP would emerge victorious at all levels in Kwara State. The victory of PDP at both federal and state levels would be beneficial to all Nigerians.” He added that the victory would wipe off the challenges that confronted Nigerians under the Muhammadu Buhari administration. “If we emerge at the federal level, all of us will be the beneficiaries. With your support we will win the state,” he said.

But eight months after, his prediction fell on his face. Saraki lost his re-election bid. He was defeated by the APC senatorial candidate Alhaji Ibrahim Oloriegbe who polled 123, 828 votes against Saraki’s 68,994. Rather than accept defeat Saraki said he lost to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the military.

A political observer in Kwara State, Dr Abubakar Malik, said Saraki’s defeat was not by accident. He said: “Saraki’s game is up. He is reaping what he sowed. Remember how he emerged as Senate President. He stabbed the party at the back. He connived with the PDP to frustrate President Muhammadu Buhari’s programmes and policies. The budgets sent to the National Assembly were not passed as at when due. List of government nominees were not approved months after they were sent to the Senate.  The results of elections in Kwara State has nailed political coffin of Saraki.”

Danbaba

Abdullahi Danbaba represents Sokoto South Senatorial District. He was elected on the platform of APC in 2015, but defected to the PDP in 2018. He was very critical of the Buhari administration. His words: “The APC-led Federal Government has derailed from its mandate and failed to meet the yearnings of Nigerians. The APC has failed to address the three core issues facing the country which are those of security, economy and corruption for which it was voted into power in 2015.” The senator said he opted to leave the APC because of lack of equity, justice and fairness to all members.

Danbaba had boasted that the defectors would not regret dumping the APC for the PDP. He expressed optimism that the PDP would return as the nation’s ruling party in 2019. He was one of the strong supporters of Saraki when the APC was calling for the Senate President’s resignation, after his defection from the APC to the PDP.

His dream that the PDP would bounce back as ruling party was not fulfilled, as the opposition party lost the 2019 presidential election to the APC.  He boasted that the PDP would win 10 northern states in the general elections. Danbaba also failed to realise his ambition to return to the Senate. He lost the senatorial election to the APC candidate, Shehu Tambuwal, who scored 134,224 votes to Danbaba’s 112,546 votes.

Nazif

He was elected on the platform of the APC to represent Bauchi North Senatorial District in 2015. He was among the 14 senators that dumped the APC in 2018. He is the Chairman at Employment, Labour and Productivity Committee. Born in 1970, he is one of the youngest senators in the National Assembly.

Nazif belongs to the Abuja-based political group that was determined to unseat Bauchi State Governor Mohammed Abubakar. With the result of the supplementary election released by INEC, Abubakar lost to the PDP governorship candidate, Bala Muhammed.

However, Nazif was not lucky in his bid to return to the 9th Senate on the platform of the PDP. He came third in the contest won by Alhaji Muhammed Bukachuwa of the APC who polled 110,631 votes. Nazif garnered 56,379 votes.

Shittu

Senator Ubale Shittu represents Jigawa North East Senatorial District. His defection from the APC to the PDP was opposed by his constituents. They protested and told him that he was on his own. Shittu had vowed before his defection that he would work to unseat the state Governor Abubakar Badaru. He premised his defection on the failure of APC government to fulfil its promise.

He alleged Badaru of poor performance. According to him, “Governor Badaru deceived my senatorial district because since he came on board he didn’t commission a single project in Hadejia emirate. All the projects in the district were inherited from previous regimes.

Shittu who vowed to unseat the governor and the APC controlled Federal government was instead stopped from returning to the 9th Assembly. He lost the senatorial election to Ibrahim Hassan of APC who scored 184,185. Shittu got 103, 039 votes.

Misau

The senator representing Bauchi Central Senatorial District, Isa Misau had boasted that he didn’t need the APC to win election. He claimed that despite his defection from the ruling party to the PDP, his popularity has not been affected. Explaining why he defected, he said: “The APC’s lack of internal democracy and justice for all members were some of the reasons that informed my decision to quit the ruling party.

“I was a founding member of the APC, but we and our supporters were short changed in the local and state congresses of the party. Our people were denied forms and election officials were hidden from us. So the injustice in the APC is worse than what we accused the PDP of in the past. In APC, if you are maltreated, you have nowhere to channel your grievances. Everybody knows there is discipline in the PDP. If you are treated unfairly you know where to report your grievances and you will be heard.”

Though Misau didn’t get PDP’s ticket to contest, the APC candidate, Mr Haliru Jiga won the Bauchi Central senatorial seat. He polled 66,024 to defeat Bappa Aliyu of the PDP who scored 57, 069. Thus, Misau’s popularity failed to see Aliyu through.

Atunwa

Rasaq Atunwa represents Asa/Ilorin West Federal Constituency, Kwara State in the House of Representatives. He is a disciple of Saraki. He had benefitted immensely from being loyal to Saraki leadership. His political career started in 2005 when Saraki appointed him as a commissioner; in 2011, he was elected member of Kwara House of Assembly and became Speaker of the House. In 2015, he was elected into the House of Representatives on the platform of APC. He followed his political godfather to PDP in 2018.

He called President Buhari a tyrant while commenting on the Supreme Court judgment which cleared Saraki of wrong asset declaration. Atunwa said “the Supreme Court has just declared that the action of the tyrant in harassing Saraki with CCT is unlawful.” He also berated the performance of the Buhari administration which he said was responsible for defection of some federal lawmakers from the APC to the PDP.

Atunwa who contested 2019 Kwara governorship election on PDP’s ticket lost to APC candidate, AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq.

Muhammed

Zakari Muhammed is a member of the House of Representatives from Kwara North. He has had longstanding political ties with Saraki, a relationship that has advanced the political career of Muhammed. In Baruten Local Government where he hails from, a prominent politician said Muhammed’s blind loyalty to Saraki was responsible for the former’s meteoric rise within the Saraki political camp. He has been touted as a possible governorship candidate, if Saraki decides that power should be zoned to Kwara North.

Though Muhammed didn’t seek re-election but the APC won his seat. The APC candidate, Malam Mohammed Bio scored 37,914 to defeat Alhaji Abubakar Musa of the PDP with 14,476 votes.