By Bashir Ahmadu

As the country approaches the 2027 general elections, several political gladiators are coming out to show their interest to run for the gubernatorial election in Nasarawa State.

One of these political gladiators that stands tall amongst his peers is none other than Senator Ahmed Wadada Aliyu, the lawmaker representing Nasarawa West Senatorial District under the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Looking at the calibre and status of all the political gladiators that have so far indicated their interests to contest for the 2027 govership seat in Nasarawa State, it is in order to say that none can compare to Senator Wadada’s political dexterity, depth and sagacity.

Senator Wadada remains the only politician who left a ruling political party to join a less known party three months to a general election and won his senate seat after defeating the candidate of the then national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu.

Not only that, Senator Wadada worked assidously with other politicians from across Nasarawa State to ensure that his political party, the SDP dislocated the then major opposition party in the state, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by winning two out of three senatorial seats, two out of five available House of Representatives seats, as well as three out of 24 state assembly seats.

It takes only a politician like Senator Wadada whose grassroots appeal and acceptance resulted in a sweeping victory for the SDP, a relatively unknown political party in Nasarawa State.

Looking through the years, it is not too difficult to understand why Senator Wadada remains a political collosus and consummate politician both within and outside Nasarawa State.

Indeed, it is not by accident that today, Senator Wadada remains the most visible, experienced politician amongst all those who have do far shown interest to contest to become governor in 2027.

His political sojourn began in earnest in 2001 after a personal assessment by the late Captain Husa Okunbo, who after studying Wadada closely while working with Vision Technology Company, told him that, “I have looked at you and I have assessed you, I think you will be best for politics.” incidentally, Vision Technology was the firm contracted to produce the transparent ballot boxes used in the 1999 general elections.

The real political journey however began for Senator Wadada shortly afterwards, when his friends and contemporaries in Keffi saw the need for him to represent their interests by joining partisan politics.

“And it so coincided, that my contemporaries back home in Keffi were thinking that within the period in question, we have contributed so much to the evolvement, development and of course progress of democracy and none of us has ever taken part in the process as to canvassing or aspiring for political office.

“And the thought then was one of us should vie for an elective office, and it so much happen that I was one of those that were in consideration and it so happened to favour me more much more because I was the only one that was in the private sector; any other person among us then that were in consideration was to leave his job before coming to aspire, and I was much more of a freelance,” Wadada recounted.

The rest, of course, is now history. Wadada contested for the Karu/Kokona/Keffi Federal Constituency seat in 2003 and was dully elected as a member of the House of Representatives. His election in that year was also unprecedented, having to demystify claims that he could not be elected coming from the same polititical party and electoral ward with then governor Abdullahi Adamu.

In 2007, Wadada was re-elected to represent Karu/Kokona/Keffi Federal Constituency. While serving his tenure as a member of the House of Representatives, destiny again smiled his way as Wadada in 2004 also became a member of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the then ruling PDP. It was a policy of the PDP then to have zonal representation from the National Assembly at the NEC. He represented the North Central Zone for four years at the PDP NEC.

In 2015, Wadada contested for the Nasarawa West Senatorial District. Though he eventually lost the election, Wadada was however convinced that he won the election but the result was manipulated in favour of Senator Abdullahi Adamu.

“I won the election by votes and lost by manipulation. The PDP went to court. I didn’t go to court. PDP went to court and it was obvious that we were going to be given back our stolen mandate, but elders, leaders intervened and the case was withdrawn,” he said.

As part of the merger leading to the formation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2013, Senator Wadada was the National Financial Secretary of the nPDP, when five governors of the party joined to form the APC and to facilitate the victory of former president Muhammadu Buhari in 2015.

In 2019, Wadada contested for the governorship seat of Nasarawa State alongside incumbent governor, Engineer Abdullahi A. Sule. Though there were attempts by some of the aspirants to scuttle the primary election that produced the incumbent governor, Senator Wadada was the first to accept the outcome of the exercise, thereby nipping in the bud any attempt to undermine the exercise.

“Before A. A. Sule was finally declared winner of the elections, about 2 or 3 of the aspirants, our colleagues aspirants said because of the suspected role played by then government, we should scuttle the election. I said fantastic idea. I now left them seating where they were, and I went back to where I was before they drew my attention and on going back to my seat, I said come to look at it, talking to myself, come to look at it, why should I be a factor to destabilization?

“I grew up to see deep relationship between His Royal Highness, Alhaji Sule Bawa, my father, by extension because of his relationship with late Danyaya, my late father, in my growing up days, I used to think at a point that they were brothers, Alhaji Sule Bawa, Alhaji Mustapha Gudi and Danladi Halilu’s father, Halilu Rinze. I used to think all of them were brothers.

“So I sat down, I said why should I be a party to this plan? A. A Sule was the son to Alhaji Sule Bawa, Sarkin Gudi; what’s the difference? Shortly before the declaration, coincidently or unknown to him, A. A Sule went to seat close to those that wanted us to scuttle the process. So I stood up from my seat went to him and said, congratulations ahead. I congratulated him before he was finally declared. So that punctured the plans without me talking to anybody,” he added.

In 2023, Wadada contested again for the Nasarawa West Senatorial District and won his election under the platform of the SDP. Reminiscent of the significant role he played while he was in the House, first as the Chairman, House Committee on Information that gave birth to the signing of the Freedom of Information Act and then Chairman, House Committee on Capital Market and Institutions, which saw to the amendment of the Investment and Security Act, Senator Wadada now as Chairman, Senate Committee on Public Accounts, is listed among the most vibrant legislatures in the present Tenth Senate.

For Senator Wadada therefore, gunning for the Nasarawa State governorship seat come 2027 is not only a natural inclination but preparation meeting opportunity.

Ahmadu writes from Keffi, Nasarawa State.