The North West is probably the most important
voting bloc in the March/April 2015 election; it’s
not only the home base of Major General
Muhammadu Buhari, the presidential candidate
of the All Progressives Congress (APC), but also
that of the sitting Vice President, Muhammed
Namadi(na) Sambo. The North West is the home
of former Heads of State of Nigeria, Generals
Murtala Muhammed, Sani Abacha and Buhari
himself, as well as first Executive President,
Alhaji Shehu Shagari, and the first and only
Premier of Northern Nigeria, Sir Ahmadu Bello.
The North West, with seven states and 18.9
million registered voters offers the biggest prize
for any presidential candidate. So far, voters in
this geo-political zone have collected 15, 827,
842 permanent voters cards (PVCs) with which
they hope to dismiss President Goodluck
Jonathan this March. The votes of the North
West zone are particularly coveted by every
presidential candidate.
Unfortunately, the people’s will in the impending
elections is being subverted by the activities of
Vice President Namadi Sambo who has
descended with huge bags of money to bribe
voters in the North West. There can never be a
free and fair election where politicians seek to
influence how people vote by giving them
money, whether it is hard earned or stolen from
the public treasury.
Sambo is a lightweight politician who has no
significant following in the North West. His
attempt to create a political base made him
prop up Alhaji Tanko Yakasai to contest the
chairmanship of the Arewa Consultative Forum
(ACF). Having utterly failed, Yakasai formed the
obsequious Northern Elders Council (NEC), a
shadowy group confined to periodic issuance of
press release in support of the Jonathan
presidency. Of course, Yakasai, on account of
his bread and butter politics, can never be
elected to the chair of ACF.
Sambo’s problem in the North West flows
directly from his inability to exercise any
meaningful influence on the Jonathan
presidency. Sambo is a perfect example of a
spare tyre. In six years, Sambo hasn’t been able
to attract any meaningful project to the North
West. The so called independent power project
being built for Kaduna is stillborn. The attempt
to revive the Kaduna textile plants has
floundered. The so-called Abuja-Kaduna single
railway, which Labaran Maku repeatedly vowed
would be commissioned in 2014, and on which
Sambo staked his reputation, has remained a
white elephant.
The simmering rivalry between Sambo and Sule
Lamido, Governor of Jigawa State on one hand
and on another level between him and Ibrahim
Shehu Shema, Governor of Katsina State, over
who among the three should run with Jonathan
in 2015, also damaged Sambo’s standing. Each
of the two north western governors had at one
time or the other been touted as possible
replacement for Sambo.
In Kaduna, the Sambo boy, Muktar Ramalan
Yero, has failed to distinguish himself as a
serious governor and is headed for defeat in
both the presidential and gubernatorial
elections. Early this year, Yero’s frustration with
the opposition’s challenge culminated in his
being heard on tape threatening the well being
of Nasir El-Rufa’i and APC supporters. After
promising Jonathan two million votes, the
President was surprised to discover that not
many people turned up to listen to him when he
went to Kaduna to campaign. This explains the
PDP desperation to use obscene amount of
money to buy the loyalty of voters.
Even in the presidency, Sambo is not taken
serious and Anyim Pius Anyim, the Secretary to
the Government of the Federation, is reportedly
more powerful than him. Sambo doesn’t pull his
weight at all. At the PDP presidential campaign
rally in Nasarawa, he was told point blank that
he will not be given the party’s presidential
ticket in 2019. In an organised political clime,
Sambo would have been given the opportunity
to make that stunning announcement himself.
Obama may not be inclined to having Joe Biden
clinch the Democratic Party ticket for the 2016
presidential run, but he dares not announce
that, least of all in the heat of a re-election
campaign. Sambo isn’t a leader; he’s a follower
and will remain so.
Sambo doesn’t seem understand that the
essence of a joint ticket is to be able to
occasionally sway things in favour of one’s geo-
political zone, or at least achieve balance. The
role of a Vice President goes beyond flapping
one’s starched babban riga and following in the
footsteps of the principal. Even when the
membership of the so called national
conference was skewed against the Muslims,
Sambo couldn’t do anything. The Sultan had to
lead a delegation to Aso Villa to complain to the
President that Muslims were under-represented
and all Sambo could do was to join in the photo
session, and despite Jonathan’s promise to
announce fresh nominations to ensure fair
representation, nothing was ever heard about
the matter again. Yet, Jonathan has promised to
implement the decisions of the national
conference if he’s elected and you ask what
benefit is there in the resolutions of a
conference heavily tilted against Muslims?
The North West wants a vice president who’s
faithful to the country and not some clueless
president. Sambo should be loyal to the
country, not Jonathan. The clerics, traditional
rulers and other special interest groups are free
to collect every dime Namadina Sambo hands
them, but they should ask themselves why he
didn’t give them this awesome amount of
money in 2013 or 2014. They should also ask
themselves what job Sambo has done to earn
this breathtaking wealth and if there is no clear
answer, then they should take the money and
vote according to their conscience. If the North
West’s voters settle for Sambo’s money instead
of the free and fair elections promised by this
government, then our people are damned.
www.dailytrust.com.ng/daily/opinion/48363-north-west-and-namadi-na-sambo

We know before,someone who can't win his ward.

GEJ isn't picking his vice presidents so that they can campaign to their kindred while he lies in a UK hospital bed. Sambo wasn't chosen to dupe his people the way OSibanjo was chosen to dupe his own.

The tinubuz southwest(apc youruba thugs) are so senseless, buhari is using osinbajo to split d yorubaz votes and also a pastor to split christians vote. He failed wen he used bakare, and he's going to fail cos God can never be mocked. D guy doesn't give a damn abt christianity, he's doing all dis permutations to favor his course. Buh some thugs re to dull and dumb to get d message, children kips shouting change change wif dem mouth odour

Samboribobo the clueless vice president. I was wondering what could be more clueless than GEJ, some animals came to my mind, then I remembered Sambo.

gєנ ѕнυ∂ fσяgт ∂αт мαи ¢αℓℓ ѕαмбσ..нιѕ иσт α ρσℓιтι¢ιαи

We know. That is why we are insisting that government is for everybody, it should not be restricted to all those old generals that think that Nigeria was handed over to them as their personal estates. They've has their shot, let others be allowed to exercise their right to aspire to greatness irrespective of their background.

Ikengawo:
GEJ isn't picking his vice presidents so that they can campaign to their kindred while he lies in a UK hospital bed. Sambo wasn't chosen to dupe his people the way OSibanjo was chosen to dupe his own.

omo ibo,ao is osibanjo dupin d pple of d south west?