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AMINU
IYAWA'S MOSQUITO TALES AND THE IGNOMINY OF DOUBLE STANDARDS
*** Written
by Mustapha Atiku Ribadu,
Secretary, Adamawa State APC ***
My attention has been drawn to an article
authored by Alhaji Aminu Iyawa titled “The
King Who Fell to the Mosquito.”
Ordinarily, such a fluid publication filled with innuendos, historical
distortions, and dangerous ethnic insinuations should not deserve a response.
However, silence in the face of deliberate misinformation may be mistaken for
consent and approval. Such compelled my intervention.
As a Fulani man who has
associated closely with Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri over the years, I can
authoritatively debunk the falsehoods and toxic narratives put forward by
Iyawa.
The best one can say about his article is
that it is a cocktail of distortions, exaggerations and politically motivated
bitterness that may sadly be induced by old-age, senility and fading judgment.
For an experienced
journalist, and a man who once occupied the office of Commissioner for
Information, one would expect a measured intervention built on facts, fairness
and balance. Unfortunately, what Iyawa presented in his self-styled and phantom
article was a dangerous ethnic sermon cloaked as political commentary.
His repeated reference to “mosquitoes” and his literary subterfuge are most unfortunate. A man
in his seventies should be bold enough to express his views directly without
hiding behind parables and coded attacks designed to inflame sentiments and
deepen ethnic suspicion.
The truth is simple:
Governor Fintiri has never demonstrated hatred against the Fulani people. That
narrative exists only in the imagination of politicians who have lost relevance
and are desperately searching for ethnic fault lines to exploit for political
survival.
I do not even need to begin
listing the numerous Fulani individuals who have remained close associates,
political allies and beneficiaries of Governor Fintiri’s administration because
doing so would amount to a needless waste of time and energy. I could not also
be able to mention Fulani communities that have benefitted from Fintiri's acts
of benevolence and good governance. Facts are sacred and they are already
visible for every objective observer in Adamawa State to see.
Governor Fintiri’s relationship with the Fulani community
remains solid and cordial. His administration has accommodated all tribes,
religions and political tendencies in the state without discrimination. The
governor’s developmental projects, appointments and political engagements
clearly reflect inclusiveness rather than the imaginary tribal agenda Iyawa
desperately seeks to construct.
It is also disingenuous for
Iyawa to question the legitimacy of Governor Fintiri’s 2023 re-election. The
election was free, fair and constitutionally validated. Unless Iyawa has
suddenly chosen to join the camp of Hudu Yunusa Ari and other disgruntled
elements who attempted to subvert democracy, he should respect the verdict of
the Supreme Court, which remains the highest judicial authority in the land.
In every democracy, election
petitions are normal. Contesting an election in court does not invalidate the
mandate freely given by the people. The Supreme Court spoke clearly and
decisively on the matter. That should have settled every debate for sincere
democrats.
More importantly, Iyawa’s article exposes a troubling level of
hypocrisy and double standards. Nigerians have not forgotten that when his
former boss, Admiral Murtala Nyako, was impeached as governor in 2014, Aminu
Iyawa himself led several commissioners from the Nyako administration to openly
pledge loyalty to the then Acting Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri.
A number of people could not
easily forget how Iyawa excoriated and lambasted Nyako before Fintiri in order
to be part of his cabinet. But from the look of things, it appears that decades
after Fintiri refused to accommodate Iyawa who was one of Nyako's major beneficiaries,
because of integrity deficit, the man is yet to recover from the rejection
hence this open vitriol.
The same Fintiri he now
attempts to demonize as tribalistic and tyrannical was good enough to receive
their allegiance at the time. The same “Marghi
man” he attacks today was embraced by Iyawa when political convenience demanded
it. So what has changed now? The answer is simple: personal interest and a
desire for political patronage.
It is therefore dishonest
for Iyawa to suddenly reinvent himself as a defender of democracy and ethnic
harmony when history clearly shows his political positions have always been
shaped by convenience rather than principle.
Adamawa people are wiser today.
They understand the difference between genuine political criticism and
dangerous attempts to weaponized ethnicity for selfish political ends. The
state has suffered enough from divisive politics and should not be dragged
backward by those seeking relevance through inflammatory narratives.
As leaders, we must rise
above bitterness, ethnic baiting and personal vendetta. Politics should never
become a platform for sowing discord among communities that have coexisted
peacefully for generations.
Governor Ahmadu Umaru
Fintiri remains focused on governance, development and sustaining peace in
Adamawa State. No amount of revisionist storytelling or mosquito analogies can
erase the visible realities of progress and inclusive leadership being
witnessed across the state.
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