By Dr. Sulaiman Abdulwahab Sulaiman, CNA

I wholeheartedly agree with Rayyanu Bala in his write-up entitled “Ex-IGP Adamu’s Statement: A Challenge to Senator Al-Makura,” published by Nasarawa Eye on 12th September 2026.
The statement attributed to former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar Adamu, at the SDP National Convention that “nobody needs the APC in Nasarawa State” and that “the people are tired of the APC” should not be dismissed as an ordinary political statement. It deserves serious examination, particularly in view of the political circumstances surrounding the statement and the individuals associated with the former IGP’s political journey.
Let us begin with a simple question: Who encouraged, supported and stood behind IGP Adamu when he entered the Nasarawa governorship contest?
Available reports establish that Senator Umaru Tanko Al-Makura publicly declared his support for IGP Adamu’s governorship ambition during the 2026 APC primary season. Senator Al-Makura’s involvement went beyond a mere expression of support. Reports indicated that he led IGP Adamu’s campaign team on consultations with traditional rulers and publicly backed his candidacy ahead of the APC governorship primary.
Indeed, when IGP Adamu visited Senator Al-Makura at his residence in Lafia, reports described the former governor as receiving him warmly and speaking positively about Adamu as a committed APC member and supporter of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Therefore, the political relationship between the two men was not merely a matter of speculation; it was publicly demonstrated through their political engagements during the 2026 governorship contest.
The question that naturally follows is this: If Senator Al-Makura was sufficiently convinced that IGP Adamu possessed the leadership capacity to govern Nasarawa State, why should Nigerians be surprised if Adamu’s subsequent political direction is viewed in the context of Senator Al-Makura’s political position and earlier support for him?
It is also important to recall that political commentary has repeatedly associated IGP Adamu with the political backing and mentorship of Senator Al-Makura. One analysis explicitly referred to the alleged political mentorship and support between the two men, while other reports portrayed IGP Adamu as Senator Al-Makura’s preferred candidate in the emerging political contest involving the camp of Governor Abdullahi Sule.
So, when IGP Adamu now makes a sweeping declaration that the people of Nasarawa are tired of the APC, Nigerians and members of the APC are entitled to ask whether this represents merely his personal political opinion or whether it forms part of a broader political strategy.
There is another dimension that should not be ignored.
Senator Al-Makura has publicly spoken about the need to mobilise support and strengthen the APC’s campaign for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 2027 re-election. Earlier in 2026, he was reported to have advocated stronger grassroots mobilisation and public enlightenment as part of the APC’s strategy.
This creates a legitimate political question: Can one simultaneously be associated with mobilising support for the APC and President Tinubu at the national level while also being politically associated and supportive with a politician who has moved away from the APC and is now challenging the party’s political dominance in the state?
That is the political contradiction that the APC, at both the state and national levels, may wish to interrogate. It is also why the statement attributed to IGP Adamu deserves closer examination.
If the people are truly “tired of the APC,” then Senator Al-Makura, as a prominent APC figure and former governor of Nasarawa State, should have no difficulty explaining how the political trajectory of someone he strongly supported for the APC governorship ticket relates to that assertion.
The issue is not whether IGP Adamu has the constitutional right to change political parties. He does. The issue is political consistency.
There is nothing inherently wrong with changing political parties. Nigerian political history is full of politicians who have moved from one political platform to another. But when such a movement is followed by declarations that the party one previously sought to lead has become unwanted by the people, the public has every right to examine the circumstances surrounding that political change.
It is particularly important in this case because the 2026 APC governorship primary already provided a clear verdict from APC membership across the state. Senator Ahmed Aliyu Wadada defeated IGP Adamu decisively, with contemporary reports putting Senator Wadada at about 196,000 votes and IGP Adamu at roughly 42,000 votes.
That result should also be respected.
The people must speak through the ballot box. If the people are tired of the APC, they will demonstrate it at the election. If they are satisfied with the APC, they will demonstrate that too. That is democracy.
It is therefore difficult to accept the proposition that the people of Nasarawa are automatically “tired of the APC” merely because one politician has chosen to leave the party or contest against it.
I also find it difficult to understand the argument that the entire people of Nasarawa are tired of the APC when recent political developments indicate that the party still possesses significant structures, political actors and grassroots support across the state. Even Senator Al-Makura himself was publicly advocating a stronger APC campaign strategy for 2027 earlier in 2026.
Therefore, the burden is on those making such a sweeping claim to demonstrate it not merely through speeches at political conventions, but through evidence of the people’s actual choice at the ballot box.
The Bigger Lesson from Nasarawa is simple: No individual should confuse personal political ambition with the collective will of the people.

Dr. Sulaiman Abdulwahab Sulaiman, CNA
FACSA (USA), FCIFCN, FCIM, FICAN, FICEN
Former Executive Secretary, Nasarawa State Scholarship Board