Who Succeeds Nasir El-Rufa’i?

President Muhammadu Buhari visited Kaduna State recently and commissioned quite a number of projects. This working visit brought to the limelight the silent achievements that have been going on in Kaduna State under Malam Nasir El-Rufa’i.

Many persons have therefore been asking: who will succeed Malam El-Rufa’i and sustain the gains made under him? This is a democracy, therefore, succession under this dispensation is clearly a game of numbers: it is elections that would determine the most preferred candidate among those that aspire.

But before then, there are choices that need to be made and positioned in the course of the selection process. Many are jostling and positioning their preferences in public commentaries, and the actual political processes unfolding.

One of the persons that will have to decide which person to support as governor of Kaduna State in this ongoing political process is Malam Nasir El-rufa’i himself.

He is reported to have admitted to reporters at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on February 24 that the issue of his successor is something that keeps him awake some nights. Having invested so much effort into the state governance process, he rightly should worry.

No leader who has vision for his people will allow who succeeds him to chance. He must be interested in the programmes he visions to be continued and in certain cases completed. This is also the case with people who may even be outside of the government who have keyed-in to these programmes.

In the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), four persons were mentioned by the Conscience Triumph in August 2021 to have indicated interest in the governorship of Kaduna State, after El-Rufa’i. The online medium named them as Dr Abdulmalik Mohammed Durungwa, Sani Dattijo, Bashir Jamoh and Bashir Saidu. Except for Bashir Saidu, the other three of these contenders have declared for the seat. A fourth contender in the person of Sani Shaaban has also emerged.

The whispers in political circles are asking: is El-Rufa’i’s deputy contesting? Or why is she not contesting? The deputy governor, Dr Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe, has not yet declared her intention to contest for the golden seat in Sir Kasim Ibrahim House. Many people have called on her to do so. And why not? In my opinion, she is the most qualified successor to Governor Nasir El-Rufa’i.

She is an active deputy governor. Her principal trusts her well enough to allocate her with important permanent schedules which have enriched her experience and prepared her for the seat. In addition to being the deputy chair of the state executive council, which she has chaired countless times, Dr Balarabe chairs two of its important sub-councils. The Kaduna State Executive Council constituted five policy councils which serve as clearing houses for more detailed discussions on given issues before finally meeting the attention of Council.

She currently chairs the Infrastructure Development Council and the Human Capital Development Council; and often attends other policy council meetings to not only keep abreast but ensure that they are operating within the policy direction of the government.

All ministries and departments in Kaduna State are under her supervision. This means that she understands these MDAs and their workings very well. Before any memorandum goes to the state executive council, she would have seen it and helped shape it so that the task of the council is reduced. These memoranda could either arise from the MDAs or the Policy Councils she chairs. All these activities keep her in the forefront of the state governance.

One cannot keep count of the number of times that she acted as governor in the absence of her principal who is also active in APC committees and affairs, national and international issues. In the periods that she acted, she acquitted herself creditably well. It can be seen, therefore, that she is eminently prepared for the position of governor after Nasir El-Rufa’i.

What is more? She has other exposures before becoming deputy governor that has made her a strong personality conversant with the workings of government, donor agencies and el-Rufa’i’s style and vision.

A medical doctor by training, Dr Hadiza Balarabe also holds a master’s degree in Public Health, has worked with Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, worked with El-Rufa’i in the FCT’s Primary Healthcare Development Agency and headed Kaduna State Primary Healthcare Development Agency. She has become very conversant with requirements of international donor bodies and will continue to be a source of funding for many health and social safety nets for the people of Kaduna State.

One of the things that will count against her if she decides to join the race is that she does not command the kind of money that attracts the traditional politician: she cannot ‘spray’ them money or distribute cars to them. So if she contests, her campaign will be based on integrity, track records and issues. This is the direction that Malam El-Rufa’i has been steering Kaduna State towards.

Another issue that some political pundits see as a hindrance to a possible governorship ambition of Her Excellency is her gender. That being a woman, she does not stand a chance in our predominantly patriarchal society. That she is a woman, for me, is precisely her strength. Many believe that Nigeria is where it is because the same set of persons have taken control of affairs of state since independence. This definitely includes the dominance of men in politics and governance.

Since its creation in 1967, as North Central state, the state has been governed by men. Except for the stint of Mrs Pamela Sadauki as an appointed deputy governor during the military regime, Dr Hadiza Balarabe is the first elected female deputy governor of Kaduna State. Before her, they had all been men! Since people want change, she shall just be that change desired. If she contests, she will just be providing the people of Nigeria, and not just Kaduna State, with an alternative from the usual options available to them.

When she was nominated as deputy for El-Rufa’i in 2018, many said that APC was losing election because of the choice of a woman against the belief of some Christian and Islamic clerics.

With enlightenment and clarifications, the election was won. This can be repeated.

Besides, women are better voters at elections. The outcome of the 2019 governorship election in Kaduna State indicated that women voted for the pair that contained a woman. There are ongoing enlightenment and activities by the United Nations agencies, community based organisations and the Kaduna State Ministry of Human Services on the importance of women in leadership positions and the need to end discriminatory practices against women.

Clearly, these programmes are gaining acceptability and their impacts are being felt. In Kaduna State as at today, the ratio of female to male commissioners is 50:50.

Governor Nasir El-Rufa’i publicly admitted during the celebration of the 2022 International Women’s Day at Musa Yar’adua Centre, Murtala Square, Kaduna on the 8th of March that women had contributed a lot to the successes attained by his administration in the state. Little wonder that when he had the opportunity recently with the resignation of one of the male commissioners, he replaced him with a woman.

No one changes a winning team. Will Malam Nasir El-Rufa’i change his winning women’s team? Is it not the time for him to lend his moral support for a woman contestant who he has guarantee that she shall perform well as governor? He has worked with her and he knows that Dr Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe has capacity and is a product that will easily be marketable.

– Turaki wrote from Kaduna, and can be reached on [email protected]

Disclaimer: This article is entirely the opinion of the writer and does not represent the views of The Whistler.