By; JACOB ONJEWU DICKSON
The Adamawa State Gubernatorial candidate of the Labor Party (LP) Malam Umar Mustapha Madawaki (Otumba) has alleged that the Governor of Adamawa State, Rt Hon Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri is playing a double game with People’s Democratic Party (PDP) alongside his party.
According to Otumba, Fintiri is jittery with the growing popularity of his party and the general acceptability of his candidature.
He said, LP is becoming a phenomenon that has forced Fintiri into a double sworded game, rambling between his party’s Presidential candidate, Peter Obi’s name, and the PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
He alleged that Governor Ahmadu has been telling Christians to vote for Obi at the presidential polls and vote for him at governorship poll, sayimg a different thing at his campaign rallies where he has never mentioned Obi’s name.
“It is unfortunate to know that he came up with a certain political paradigm and abandoned his political party’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Otumba said Fintiri has promised to deliver Adamawa State to the Labour Party, knowing full well he does not have that capacity.
“I’m assuring you he is only being mischievous with the propaganda that he is going to work for Peter Obi, campaigning to Christians in the state to vote for all elective positions in PDP and vote not the PDP Presidential candidate, Atiku.
“All through his campaign trend, Governor Fintiri has never mentioned Obi’s name even once. Also, he has never said in all his campaigns that people should not vote for Atiku. Is that not mischief?
“The governor is just playing a double sworded game. He will tell Obi’s followers he is working for him. When he goes to the other side of Atiku, he will tell them that anybody that will not vote for Atiku, he doesn’t need the person’s vote.
“He has no principles, his only political ideology is to come back to power. Knowing fully well that he has not done anything for Adamawa State that will warrant him a second term.
“I, therefore, want to re-emphasize this that it is sacrosanct, it is a solid fact that the Labor Party has come to stay, it is a solid fact a revolution is in the offing in Nigeria. It is a solid fact we will win the presidential and the gubernatorial election,” Otumba said
Oumba accused the governor of delving into his party’s affairs on his own, thinking he is going to spoil the chances of LP to form the next government, not knowing the party has a coherent structure, and consolidated all his local government structure to a point of winning the election.
Otumba during an interview with newsmen in Yola, said, “First and foremost, we are a coherent political party and we are up and doing. Everybody in Adamawa knows the Labour Party as one to beat.
“We are a political party like any other, we are not devoid of internal wranglings. In our case, it emanated from incursion made into our party by the Governor of Adamawa State.”
He accused the Chairman of Adamawa State Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Bishop Stephen Dami Mamza, and the EYN President Reverend Joel Billy of hiding under the collar of religion to play tribal politics for their brother, the governor.
“Before now, Governor Ahmadu has the feelings and belief that his kinsmen, Bishop Stephen Dami Mamza who happens to be the CAN chairman of Adamawa State, and the EYN President, Billy are the deciding leaders of all the Christians in Adamawa State.
“We heard them endorsing Gov Fintiri. But why are they endorsing him? The governorship candidate of YPP is a Christian, why can’t they support him? Why are they supporting a Muslim? It is the handi work of Dami Mamza who is now playing tribal politics in the name of religion. I can tell you in confidence there are a good number of CAN officials who are not with him because he is using his political pranks of ethnic politics to favor Fintiri, his Brother in the name of religion.
“He did that in 2019 and got away with it, now the Christians are better enlightened with his tribal politics in the name of religion.
“He sees nothing good in any aspirant except Fintiri because he is his tribal man. Leadership is God-given, you wouldn’t know who God anointed for that, but at least he should hide his interest. If it turns out that Fintiri doesn’t emerge winner, how are they going to work with the other person they rejected? There is no wisdom and common sense to what they are doing.
He however, said Adamawa Christians are better informed now that the endorsement of Fintiri by Dami and Billy is not all about Christianity, but an ethnic agenda to make sure their brother emerges as the next governor of the state for the second term.
“The emergence of the Labor Party has falsified that assertion because Christians in Adamawa adopted the party as their own. Fintiri realizes this is a danger that will throw him out of the Government House.
“Unfortunately for the governor and the two Christian leaders, the Christians in Adamawa are becoming more aware that they have fallen into a trap and the best option for them is to embrace the Labour Party and discard APC and PDP.
” I’m glad that the Christian community is beginning to realize this, and we will make them fully understand what Governor Fintiri and his cohorts are planning to do against the people of Adamawa State,” Otumba stated.
He revealed that Fintiri has been fighting him tooth and nail since he got the LP gubernatorial ticket, realizing how the wind of change is blowing against him.
Otumba in his words reiterated that, “Ahmadu is the one fueling crisis in our party because he is jittery about the party’s popularity and it is what will cost him his office in the coming election.
“He was neck bent on scuttlling my ticket and failed, he was adamant to remove my campaign office from where it is, it was not possible. Recently, he ordered my posters and billboard be destroyed because it is only the Labour Party that has become his political nightmare.
“Because he is a sitting governor, he was able to convince some national party officials that they are going to deliver Adamawa State to Peter Obi
“He has been using his adviser on security, General Sinabiji to fight me, to the extent of going to the headquarters of the Labour Party in Abuja and furnished it. I can bet you the retired general doesn’t have the resources to furnish that office. We knew someone is behind, and no one else than the governor.
“Why didn’t he furnish the PDP headquarters in Abuja or the PDP office in his state? He is trying to work himself into the hierarchy of the Labour Party in his effort to fight me.
“We have a whole lot of books on General Sinabiji. He has gone to the extent of setting up a Labour Office in Numan, a place believed to be a PDP stronghold, they are really late on this.”
Despite the glaring massive infrastructural development accrued to the government of Fintiri, Otumba washed it down by saying that:
“He has bedeviled the state with huge loans that we can’t pay. There is hardly any development in this state. Students are suffering. The youth have no job, the education system is rotten, and the health sector is in dire need of services. Pensioners are just suffering from want and poverty. He only pays pensions to those he has chosen to be paid. With all this baggage, he knows he is going nowhere and that is why he is coming with these evil machinations,” he declared.
The Labour Party candidate drew the attention of all people, especially the Christians in the state to understand that, “If you vote Obi, and you don’t give him Senators, you don’t give him members of the House of Representatives. He is going there as a minute president with APC, and PDP on his flanks and any action or inaction they don’t want is an impeachable offense. Much as we want to vote for Obi, we must also vote for his governors, Senators.
“A labour vote must be a vote for everyone contesting in the Labour Party. PDP man cannot ask us to vote for Obi and abandon others contesting, it’s not done anywhere like that,” he stressed.
Otumba expressed confidence that he is going to be the next Governor of Adamawa State, despite the strong presence of APC, PDP, SDP, and other political parties.
“I have a great number of the Christian community with me. Those who have realized that Governor Fintiri and Dami Mamza are playing the ethnic game. It is purely a tribal game it’s not even a Christian game they are playing because Fintiri is a Muslim.
“I have a great number of PDP and APC adherents who will vote for me not to talk of Labour party adherents. Who do you think will command the votes? Of course, it’ is me.
“We have all the 21 local government areas intact, we are coherent. We are getting our people back on stage. We have concluded arrangements to begin our campaign soon. I’m sure by the special grace of God, I will be the next Governor of Adamawa State and I will change the state for the better,” Otumba said.
When our correspondent contacted the Director of Media and Communications of Governor Fintiri, Mr. Solomon Kumangar to comment on the allegations raised by Otumba, he described the assertion as laughable and dreaming.
Solomon belittled Otumba as a candidate who does not exist in the thoughts of Governor Fintiri.
According to him, Umar is never a candidate to join verbal words with, because he does not have the political muscle to face Fintiri.
He recalled how Otumba failed woefully at the APC primaries and can never be regarded as a candidate that Fintiri is contending election with.
“Is Otumba a gubernatorial candidate? He is never Fintiri’s political opposition, because he does not have what it takes to win an election.
“We didn’t fight Binani, is it he a smaller figure Fintiri will fight? Please I can’t waste my time replying to a failure,” Solomon said.
