By Rayyanu Bala

The romantic language in that piece: “Politics of fear disguised as a counsel: A rejoinder” written by Alhassan Adamu Hussaini tries very hard to paint former IGP Mohammed Abubakar Adamu as a misunderstood reformer shaking the table of entrenched interests. But if you strip all these sentiments away, what remains is a simple truth: ambition is not the issue, attitude is the issue.
Across Nasarawa State and across all political parties today, there are well over 50 individuals openly or quietly nursing gubernatorial ambition. Fifty, businessmen, technocrats, legislators, grassroots politicians, all testing the waters. Yet, among them, none is generating the level of political friction, tension, and combative energy as the former IGP is doing now.
That should tell us something.
Is everyone else timid? Unprepared? Afraid? No,
they just simply understand something fundamental: democracy is a civil affair, not a command structure. It is not a parade ground where authority is asserted by presence, volume, or implied force. Politics requires persuasion, consultation, and coalition-building, not creation of tension here and there.
The article attempts to rebrand aggression as “strength” and tension as “momentum.” But strength without restraint is not leadership; it is intimidation. And intimidation, whether subtle or strategic, has no place in party politics.
Nobody says former IGP Adamu has no right to aspire. Of course he has that right, just like every qualified citizen of Nasarawa state. But rights and responsibility travel together. The manner of pursuit matters just as much as the ambition itself.
You cannot ignite political anxiety and then dismiss it as “fear of competition.” You cannot escalate temperature and then accuse others of sweating. When posters trigger tension, when sentiments carry undertones of confrontation, when entry into a race feels like a declaration of battle, certainly some within the government or with the party must react. Not because they fear competition, but because they knew what disruption of order can cause.
Let’s be frank: the APC in Nasarawa is not collapsing. It is not trembling. It is not barricading its gates. If anything, it has accommodated dozens of aspirants without drama. So when one aspirant alone becomes synonymous with conflict, the problem is not “entrenched interests.” It is an approach.
Ambition is natural. But in pursuing ambition, we must imbibe decorum.
Politics thrives on relationships. It survives on mutual respect. Even rivals maintain civility because today’s opponent could be tomorrow’s ally. That is political maturity.
What concerns many observers is not independence. It is the posture of confrontation. The subtle messaging that power must adjust because a powerful individual has arrived. Democracy does not bend to personality; personality must adapt to democracy.
And let’s correct something important: creating political tension will not manufacture popularity. Instilling fear will not secure votes just as creation of anxiety will not build structure.
Nasarawa is not a battlefield to be conquered. It is a state to be persuaded.
The over 50 aspirants from all the political parties are silent not because they lack capacity. They are measured because they understand that leadership begins with tone. They are engaging quietly, consulting widely, and building bridges, not headlines.
The article frames caution as insecurity. But most of the time caution is simply wisdom. When a political climate begins to feel charged unnecessarily, responsible stakeholders will call for calm, not because they fear competition, but because they value stability.
No one is asking anyone to kneel. But neither should anyone attempt to tower.
Democracy is not war. It is negotiation. It is consensus-building. It is patience.
If the former IGP truly seeks to lead, then the first test of leadership is not how loudly one can assert independence, but how gracefully one can coexist with others.
Yes, strength is admirable. But civility is indispensable.
And in Nasarawa, what people are asking for in 2027 is not the most combative aspirant but the most persuasive one.