Most of the 16 governors whose tenures end next year are not considering their deputies as possible successors, a Daily Trust investigation has found.
Deputy governors wanting to succeed their bosses have had to fight on their own since the 2007 general elections, making it much harder for them to make it.
In previous governorship elections, only one deputy governor has received clear endorsement and support of his principal—and succeeded.
This trend seems set to be maintained in 2015 elections, as most of the 16 second-term governors have not shown readiness to support their deputies to succeed them.
Instead, many of the outgoing governors have taken certain steps that precluded their deputies from receiving the ruling party’s nomination in the governorship election.
States whose governors are finishing their second terms in May 2015 are Kano, Jigawa, Sokoto, Adamawa, Benue, Niger, Plateau, Kebbi, Lagos, Rivers, Cross River, Delta, Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia and Akwa Ibom.
Only Kano deputy governor Abdullahi Ganduje seems to be in a good standing to get his boss’s blessing, if he decides to stand for governor in 2015.
The remaining 15 have longer shots to take, for reasons that vary from state to state.
While in some states the governors have told their deputies pointedly not to expect to step in as governors, in other states zoning formulae have been adopted that allocated the governors’ seats to areas outside the deputy governors’ senatorial districts.
There are also states whose deputies come from minority ethnic or religious groups, and therefore the governors are not taking chances with handing them the governorship election tickets.
Investigations by our correspondents show that many of the governors are not willing to allow their deputies to succeed them due to lack of trust, earlier agreements entered into, fresh political calculations, need to sustain their own structures even after they leave office and other factors.
Some of the deputies are impositions on the governors ahead of previous elections, and therefore the governors would now want to get rid of them.
Zoning, rotation
In Sokoto, Deputy Governor Mukhtari Shagari has long parted ways with Governor Aliyu Wamakko, even before the governor’s defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Their dispute became public when Shagari decided to remain in the PDP, which he would expect to give him the governorship ticket for the 2015 elections.
But in Cross River, the PDP zoned the governorship to Cross Rivers North while Deputy Governor Efiok Cobham hails from the Southern Senatorial District, which means he has effectively been edged out by the ruling party with the support of Governor Liyel Imoke.
In Akwa Ibom where there is a fairly new deputy governor, Lady Barrister Valerie Ede, it is not likely that she will be gunning to succeed her boss as she is still fresh on the scene and lacks a strong political structure on ground.
Some political observers say the deputy governor was chosen specifically because she does not have the political clout to challenge the boss’s decisions.
In Plateau, Governor Jonah Jang had made it clear from the beginning of his second tenure that he would leave in 2015 along with his deputy, Ignatius Longjan, due to their age saying he would prefer a younger person to succeed him.
But there are indications that the deputy, who had not come out to challenge his boss on that, may have started lobbying for his boss to have a rethink on the matter.
Press secretary to Mr. Longjan, Goyit Willimen, said he was not aware his boss has any governorship ambition. He said the deputy governor was focused on supporting the governor to achieve his vision for the state.
In Lagos, the scenario is a little bit different as it does not fall squarely on the shoulders of Governor Babatunde Fashola to pick his successor. The decision is likely to be made by other party leaders, especially former Governor Bola Tinubu.
Thus, Deputy Governor Victoria Adejoke Orelope-Adefulere is believed not to be making any moves to get her boss’s nod to step in his shoes.
In Benue, Cross Rivers and Adamawa, the political equation does not favour the deputies due to the minority population of their ethnic groups.
Benue Deputy Governor Stephen Lawani is interested in becoming governor, though the equation has not favoured supporting someone from Benue South. Governor Gabriel Suswam is said to be grooming one of his commissioners to succeed him, Daily Trust learnt.
Ejembi Ogwuche, a spokesman for the Benue deputy governor, said it was too early to speculate about his boss’ ambition.
“Oga is busy with his four years’ mandate at the moment by collaborating with his principal to deliver quality dividends of democracy to the people,” he said.
Also, Adamawa Deputy Governor Bala Ngilari appears interested in taking over from Governor Murtala Nyako.
It is not clear on what platform he would be standing, following the recent defection of the governor from the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Nyako was rumoured to be grooming his son, but he has lately categorically denied this.
In Bauchi, sources said Governor Isa Yuguda is more disposed to handing over to Secretary to the State Government Ibrahim Dandija, but deputy governor Sagir Aminu Saleh is already lobbying for the post.
The Bauchi deputy governor’s spokesman Abubakar Aliyu Wunti, when contacted, said: “He did not tell me, I did not hear him telling anybody that he is going to contest in 2015; even his close associates did not say he is going to contest. For that reason I am not aware.”
In Niger State, Deputy Governor Ahmed Musa Ibeto is from zone ‘C’ where the position has been zoned to by the ruling PDP, though the governor is said to be working to install a different person as successor.
There are some deputy governors who have not shown interest in becoming governors, like the ones in Katsina and Enugu, and therefore spared their principals of a possible dilemma.
Since the return of democracy in 1999, only then-Zamfara Deputy Governor Mamuda Shinkafi received express support of his principal in governorship elections. He won the 2007 elections and succeeded Governor Ahmed Sani, though they fell apart soon after that.He won the 2007 elections and succeeded Governor Ahmed Sani, though they fell apart soon after that.
Source: Daily Trust
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