(An opinion)
By Zailani Bappa
This could be the moment. The belly of justice. A journey to the denouement or that period of moving out of climax to anti-climax. In such period of time, the play gets hot, the audience gets agitated and the actors scamper. But this play is well scripted. It is the divine script and hence, has to be played even in bitterness and in angst. Now, the audience is all glad it is being played in its divine guidance.
The stage is our dear Zamfara state where actors of the script sprang out of a somewhat mixed-grill of background, orientation and opportunities. It is the combination of the good,the bad and the ugly. It is a perfect scenario of what we all are... the complex humans. Among the humans you find the saintly, the humble, the passive, the active and the demons. And when it comes to politics, one finds even the devilish.
From the year 1999, nature chose the alternating actors of the political terrain in Zamfara state. The first administration of Senator Ahmad Sani Yariman Bakura built a culture of all inclusiveness. When it ended, it succeeded in fighting the administration of Governor Mamuda Shinkafi which was generally adjudged as lackluster. But that was only when it was time to do so. And it won.With the help of Senator Ahmad Sani, Abdulazeez Yari Abunaksr ascended the chair.
What is instructive is the fact that Senator Ahmad Sani, being Yari’s benefactor, was denigrated, trampled and disrepected silly by Abduazeez Yari while the latter held fully sway. Yatrima never fought back while he remained in office because he’s been there and has accepted the global norm that power beloongs to God and he’s given it to Yari. However, no bad deed goes unpunished. The utter stampede on the very establishment that made him Governor served as his political waterloo. Yari, along with his collectives, fell into the gutter in 2019.
However, a coalition of political interests in the state decided to launch a challenge against the Will of God, they dusted up and took up sleazy arm against Matawalle whom God has chosen to bestow his power on without the help of anyone. But as it is with the Will of God, the failed each and every attempt at btringing Matawalle down.
One, when they lost out, they challenged God’s decision in a worldly court because God chose the worldly court to establish His decision. After exerted efforts, loss of cash, innumeraboe lobby, including alleged engagement of sorcerers, the challenge hits the rocks and left the camp devastated. That’s failure number one.
Two, while in office, they failed to control the growing insecurity in the the state. Frustrated at his own efforts, the then Governor once abdicated his constitutional responsibility of being the Chief Security officer and publicly jettisoned that responsibility. As he handed over power, Zamfara state was at the verge if self explosion and becoming a failed state. Conversely, however, Governor Matawalle approached the decaying peace situation in the state with calm, wisdom, valor and confidence. From June 2019, it was success upon success in this regard until their bad disposition couldn’t take it anymore..
Hence, palpably angry with the trend, they mobilized themselves, including their social media hawks, to fight the peace in the state with the view of making nonsense of it. However, like the proverbial Cock destined to crow, Matawalle kept succeeding in his peace roadmap which opened up the near normal life we are enjoying today in the state. That also marks their failure number two.
Three. They kept telling the whole world that Marealle is not their match in politics and that in any poll to hold in the state they would show Matawalle that the were still in charge. God did not wait until 2023 to prove them wrong. He brought an election, a bye-election, in Bakura for the state House of AsseblyAssembly position. They thanked their stars and moved into action. They bounced from one APC state to another and one Federal Ministry to another seeking support and cash to win.
In a grand attempt to intimidate, they invited many APC dignitaries to grand finale of their campaign in Bakura. However, to their very chagrin, the invitees failed to show up. And On election day too, they lost. The Matawalle they looked down upon in politics has this day given them a technical knock-out of the ring. Dizzied by the stars hovering orotund their eyes from the master blow, they went haywire and oozed out excessive vendetta. But, it still remains their failure number three.
Four. They made frantic efforts to rally round their fizzling crowd into a formidable force. They knelt down from door to door of those they earlier offended asking for forgiveness just as they sought the intervention the National Headquarters of their Party to heal the various fragmented segments of the Party to fuse together. They eventually did the meeting but nit the fusion. But then, an unexpected and uncontrolled tsunami fell on them. Their balloon bursted from the rear and those who were to cone together bolted singly and in groups back to Governor Matawalle’s PDP. In fact, the PDP in the state has not before, seen a greater exodus in its favour than now. Failure number four.
Now the latest of the failures happened only last week, but not that it started last week. A combination of invisible hands sought to jeopardize the peace in the state with the intent of bringing disrepute to the peace process in the state and also pitch Governor Matawalle with the Presidency. This is not unconnected to the suspicious abduction of 279 girls from GGSS Jangebe. But as they schemed, so also God schemed for his servant. The attempt failed badly and the girls are now safely returned home.
Their anger and frustration was exemplified by the actions of stationed hoodlums who laid siege and terrorrsed the team that took the girls back home. While parents of the girls welcomed the team with open arms and tears of joy as they embraced their kids, the hoodlums laid siege and unleashed terror on the team to create a state of confusion and impression of dissatisfaction from the people of Jangebe. But they lost out here too. And it’s their failure number five.
Indeed, in every play there is the climax, the anti climax and the denouement. The final scene would not be a record to be proud for those who want to continue fighting the Will of God. The sooner they sober up and allow Governor matawalle to be the better for them. Otherwise, they will soon hit the iceberg on the high seas of politics in the Titanic fashion.
