News
2019 : Buhari testing the microphone in Kano
By Ibrahim Ibrahim
Kano, the political headquarters of Northern Nigeria was agog yesterday in a fanfare atmosphere. The occasion? Over 5,000 members of the Kwankwasiyya movement decamped from the PDP to join the APC. This is just another in a series of defection we have witnessed in the Country since the beginning of this year.
It amazes me when I hear people say Buhari and some other people will share Kano votes. I laugh at the level of ignorance in such statement. Buhari is now practically an institution in Kano politics.
Since Buhari joined politics early in the new millennium and contested the presidential elections in 2003, it had become evident to all that the political landscape in the north had changed by his coming and nowhere else was this change expressed more evidently than in Kano State.
In the 2003 elections notwithstanding allegations of widespread rigging by the then ruling party PDP, General Buhari got over 1.6m votes whilst the PDP candidate then President Obasanjo scored 492,755 votes. Obasanjo polled just about 22.7% of total votes cast there by denying him the required 25% as part of requirements for winning the election.
That same election saw Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, the incumbent Governor losing to Shekarau of the ANPP. The loss of the incumbent was due largely to Gen Buhari’s membership of the ANPP and his attendant influence on Kano politics.
Fast forward to 2007 when Buhari contested against Yaradua, Buhari went ahead again to win Kano by a large margin thereby denying Yaradua the required 25% of votes cast in Kano.
In 2011 the story was not any different, this time around the incumbent Governor Ibrahim Shekarau had fallen out with Buhari over the issues of participating in the government of National unity, an idea Buhari rejected as immoral and untenable especially when he was still challenging the same government in court over the conduct of the elections. This led to Buhari leaving the ANPP and forming another party- CPC where he contested the 2011 elections.
Despite the CPC being a new party formed less than 18 months to the general elections, Buhari got over 1.6m votes again. The closest person to him in Kano State election results was Ibrahim Shekarau , the incumbent governor and presidential candidate of the ANPP and he was only able to score 526,310 votes. The PDP where Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso contested on its platform for governor was able to score only 440,666. The sum of the total votes of Shekarau and The PDP Kwankwaso’s party then was not anywhere close to what Buhari alone got in Kano under a newly formed party with little or no political structure on ground.
It was a total trumping in 2015 as Buhari/APC got over 1.9m votes in Kano as against just about 215,000 votes gathered by his closest rival- the then incumbent President and presidential flag bearer of the PDP.
Buhari is a phenomenon in Kano, succinctly put Buhari is Kano and Kano is Buhari. The enthusiasm of mammoth crowd at the defection event yesterday says it all, the support base for President Buhari in Kano is massive and intimidating.
Even though president Buhari was not at the event, his name alone was enough to draw such crowd of supporters, sympathizers and hailers. All came out en masse to show their support for PMB. Many even boasting that this time around they will be delivering 5 million votes to the president. It is uncertain if INEC processes and logistics may be able to accommodate that, but don’t be surprised if they double their 2015 vote. There are no word adequate to describe the support for Buhari in Kano.
In the APC primaries held in Kano state, President Buhari got over 2.9 million votes, this is from just his party members only. Expect much more at the general elections from Kano this time around. Many of the beneficiaries of the conditional cash transfer program are from Kano, plus many other social intervention programs of this government are from Kano. This group of beneficiaries and their dependents are in their millions. They will most likely vote for Buhari including the many supporters of President Buhari that are not even members of the APC.
Whatever crowd you saw yesterday is a shadow of things to come. Whenever Buhari decides to visit Kano himself it will be a total shut down. When the campaign proper starts and every party is given the opportunity to say what they have done for the people of Kano that is when you will see how massive the support base for President Buhari is in Kano. The current Kano state Governor stated a while ago and I quote “We have told Buhari not to lift his hand when he comes to Kano, he should just walk shoulder down. If he lifts his hand up, we will lose control of the crowd”
In the 2019 general elections the good thing is that the two leading parties have ruled Nigeria ta some point. So everyone will be running on their record. Those who spent 16 years looting the common wealth of the people will get the opportunity to come out and tell the people of Kano how they bettered their lives in the sixteen years they ruled and the APC too will get the opportunity to state what it had done in the last three and a half years to better the lot of Nigerians and indeed Kano people.
Buhari’s base of supporters is really with the masses . He is endeared by this group. There is no other politician in the north or anywhere else in Nigeria that has this type of followership. The epicenter of this followership emanates from Kano. Please find out if you doubt my assertion.
Three states in the North west region of Nigeria have a combined registered voters number of over 11.5 million, just three states! Katsina , Kano and Kaduna. President Buhari outside of government traditionally wins these three states with a landslide now that he is contesting as the incumbent, are you thinking what I am thinking? I will rest my pen here. I wish his challengers good luck and a happy contest.
Ibrahim is a public affairs commentator based in Kano.
News
DSS Moves Against Agbo, over Alleged impersonation as Benue PDP Guber candidate

The operatives of the Department of State Security Services, DSS has laid a manhunt on embattled former Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Benue State, over Alleged impersonation.
A highly placed Security source on Thursday, confirmed to our correspondent that the service is currently looking for Dr. Emmanuel Agbo for impersonating himself as the Governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party in Benue state.
The source said that Dr. Agbo, must be interrogated to enable the service have an idea were his candidature was decided as well as venue it took place.
He further added that from preliminary findings Agbo, is playing a role of a ” useful idiot ” been sponsored by political bigwigs in the state that must be unravel by the service.
He queried that all the primary election that took place across the 36 states of the Federation including the Federal Capital Territory was monitored by the DSS and reports were filed including that of Benue State which officially in the PDP, the former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, SAN emerged.
Already, a political pressure group has petitioed, Dr. Emmanuel Agbo who they Alleged he is now parading a “fake” Certificate of Return as the party’s candidate is just an “impostor” who didn’t participate in the party’s primaries in May, 2026.
“The Certificate of Return which the disbanded Turaki-led Interim National Executive Council presented to Dr. Agbo yesterday is fake and will not be recognized by the Independent National Electoral Commission during the uploading of party candidates on their portal” the group noted.
The group however challenged Agbo to present evidence that he partook in the said primaries, and also make available proofs that representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission, officials of the party from Abuja as well as representatives of Nigeria’s security agencies were present in his own selection process if there is any.
The group stated further that there are proofs that Dr. Emmanuel Agbo is being sponsored by some “disgruntled” elements to ruin the chances of the People’s Democratic Party in the forthcoming governorship election in Benue state.
The statement reads in parts:”Emmanuel Agbo has been warned to desist from this act of impersonation before it’s too late, and if he fails to stop this act, we shall drag him before a competent court to face criminal charges.
“That he is being sponsored to ruin the chances of the party is no longer a secret but, we will make sure that we stop him and his co-travellers who are hell bent on destroying the party”
News
EUYI Alleges Secret Recruitment, Job Racketeering in JAMB Ahead of Oloyede’s Exit
The Empowerment for Unemployed Youth Initiative (EUYI) has raised concerns over an alleged recruitment exercise conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), claiming that more than 100 employment letters were issued in June 2026, barely six weeks before the expiration of the tenure of JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Danesi Momoh Prince, and Secretary, Comrade Igwe Ude-Umanta, the group described the alleged recruitment exercise as secretive and called on relevant government agencies to investigate the matter.
According to EUYI, the recruitment process was allegedly carried out without public advertisement and may have violated established procedures governing employment into federal public institutions.
The organisation argued that the timing of the recruitment raises questions, particularly following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s appointment of Professor Segun Aina as the incoming Registrar of JAMB, effective July 30, 2026.
“There is no apparent urgency that would justify a major recruitment exercise by an administration that has only a few weeks remaining in office,” the statement said.
EUYI further alleged that previous recruitment exercises conducted during Professor Oloyede’s tenure had attracted public controversy and scrutiny from the National Assembly, although the JAMB management had maintained that it obtained the necessary approvals from the Federal Character Commission (FCC).
The group contended that if the latest allegations are confirmed, the exercise could amount to violations of constitutional and statutory provisions governing public sector recruitment. It cited Section 14(3) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and relevant provisions of the Federal Character Commission Establishment Act, which emphasize equitable representation, transparency, and compliance with federal character principles in public service appointments.
The advocacy group also called on the Federal Character Commission to clarify whether it approved the alleged recruitment exercise and, if so, whether all legal requirements were met before employment letters were issued.
In addition, EUYI urged anti-corruption agencies, including the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to investigate possible cases of nepotism, abuse of office, or other irregularities should evidence emerge to support such claims.
The organization stated that illegal recruitment practices and job racketeering have contributed significantly to the frustrations of millions of unemployed Nigerians, arguing that employment opportunities in public institutions should be transparent, merit-based, and accessible to all qualified citizens.
EUYI gave JAMB a three-day ultimatum to respond to the allegations and provide clarification regarding the reported recruitment exercise.
News
THE GENETICS OF BETRAYAL: WHY ALIA WAS BORN TO FIGHT AKUME
By Aondoakaa Tersugh Daniel | 22/06/2026
The moment Chief Hyacinth Iormen Alia took his oath of office, he turned his guns on Senator George Akume without any visible provocation, and the confusion that followed has lingered ever since. Akume himself could not hide his bewilderment. He has been quoted saying that people should pray for Father, because the man fighting him is not the Father he used to know. Yet a closer look into Alia’s family history reveals that this hostility is not new at all. It is simply genetics finding its way back to the surface.
Decades ago, when Senator Joseph Sarwuan Tarka championed the United Middle Belt Congress and became the face of that movement, Thomas Kastina Alia rose as his fiercest opponent within Benue. The elder Alia went as far as planting the headquarters of Nnamdi Azikiwe’s NCNC, the opposition party of that era, right inside Aliade, the very heartland of Tarka’s Masev support base. The rivalry between the two men was bitter and beyond repair.
As though that chapter of hostility was not enough, another figure emerged to continue the assignment. While Tarka served as a Minister, Godwin Dabo raised allegations of corruption against him, a move that eventually forced Tarka to resign from his position. That blow is widely remembered as one of the most damaging episodes of Tarka’s political career.
This raises a question the Kunav elite of today owe the younger generation an answer to. What truly happened between the Kunav and Jemgbagh people that birthed this chain of political vendetta? Thomas Alia, a Kunav son, frustrated Tarka of Jemgbagh first. Then it was as if a baton had been quietly passed to Godwin Dabo to finish the job. Both men were not only of Kunav extraction but shared the same Kyan constituency, a detail too specific to ignore.
It becomes difficult to understand why Akume, who descends directly from Tarka’s lineage, did not study this history closely enough to avoid walking into the same trap that Alia represents. There is an old saying that a blind man does not allow his roasted groundnuts to burn twice. If the first batch is ruined, he learns to manage the fire better on the second attempt, ensuring it comes out either half done or perfectly roasted. Akume has now looked history squarely in the face and still ended up handing power to the son of Tarka’s oldest political enemy.
So when people call this current war between Akume and Alia madness, they are not entirely wrong, but it is madness with deep roots. It is nothing more than a genetic expression of rivalry that has existed for generations, simply resurfacing in a new political season. Akume owes the memory of Tarka a final reckoning. The score can only be balanced if Akume does to Hyacinth Iormen Alia exactly what Godwin Dabo once did to Tarka.
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