By Amos Titus, Nasarawa Eggon.

The ongoing conversation around the activities associated with the Accountant General of Nasarawa State, Dr. Musa Ahmed Mohammed (Baraden Nasarawa), presents a defining test of our collective commitment to ethical governance and public accountability.

Over the past year, Nasarawa State has witnessed an unmistakable pattern, the proliferation of campaign billboards, social media promotions, and sponsored advertorials urging the Accountant General to contest the 2027 governorship election. While his associates maintain that the Accountant General has not formally declared any political ambition, the scale, coordination, and funding of these activities make that claim implausible. In Nigeria’s political environment, no “unsolicited” campaign of this magnitude happens by accident.

Defenders of Baraden Nasarawa have been quick to cite sections of the 1999 Constitution — notably Sections 66(1f), 107(1f), 137(1g), and 182(1g) — which stipulate that a public officer must resign 30 days before an election if they intend to contest. While this legal argument may hold in the narrow sense, it misses the more profound ethical and moral question that underpins effective governance.

Public service, by its very nature, demands trust, neutrality, and undivided loyalty to the state not to personal political ambition. An Accountant General, in particular, occupies one of the most sensitive offices in government, responsible for the integrity of public finances and the stewardship of taxpayer resources. When the occupant of such a post becomes associated with overt or covert political campaigns, the perception of neutrality is compromised, and public confidence inevitably erodes.

The Code of Conduct for Public Officers in the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution is explicit on this matter. Paragraph 1 warns that “a public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities.” Paragraph 9 further emphasizes that “a public officer shall not be a member of, belong to, or take part in the management or affairs of any political party.”

This is not a vague moral suggestion, it is a binding constitutional rule designed to safeguard public integrity. Political campaigns, whether openly declared or executed through proxies and “support groups,” clearly constitute participation in partisan politics. Any attempt to rationalize such conduct, while holding an active public office, undermines both the letter and the spirit of the Code of Conduct.

The danger of conflict of interest is not only in the misuse of public funds, it lies equally in the perception of bias. Citizens must believe that their public officers act with impartiality and not with hidden political motives. Once that belief is shaken, governance loses its moral foundation.

Baraden Nasarawa’s repeated public displays of loyalty to Governor Abdullahi Sule will remain hollow if such loyalty is not matched by ethical conduct. True loyalty means respecting the Governor’s leadership and refraining from actions that distract or destabilize his administration. A premature political campaign orchestrated or tolerated is a direct contradiction of that loyalty.

At a time when Governor Sule’s administration has brought fiscal discipline and infrastructural progress to Nasarawa State, the Accountant General should be at the forefront of reinforcing that vision through prudent financial management and transparency not through political distractions.

If Baraden Nasarawa genuinely aspires to serve the state as governor, the path of honour and integrity is clear: he should resign his position and pursue his political ambition openly and fairly, like any other aspirant. To do otherwise is to blur the vital line between public service and political opportunism.

By stepping down voluntarily, he would set a powerful example that leadership is not about clinging to privilege but about embracing accountability. It would demonstrate that he values ethics above expediency, and public trust above personal ambition.

Governor Abdullahi Sule must now reaffirm his commitment to good governance by reasserting ethical discipline within his administration. Allowing serving officials to flirt with politics while in office weakens the moral authority of government and fosters cynicism among citizens. Ethical leadership is not only about doing what is legal, it is about doing what is right.

Public office is a sacred trust, not a political ladder. The Accountant General of Nasarawa State must therefore choose: to serve the people with impartiality, or to pursue his political ambition with transparency but not both at the same time.

The credibility of our institutions, the integrity of governance, and the future of public trust in Nasarawa State depend on making that choice decisively and honourably.