By Prof Abubakar Ahmad Abdullahi
Politics is indeed a game of numbers. A political party draws its strength and capacity to win elections from the number of committed registered supporters especially those drawn from the grassroots.
The media is still awash as the Zamfara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) woke up yesterday, Saturday, 3/10/2026 to the shocking news of the resignation of eight serving members of the State House of Assembly elected on its platform. In separate letters addressed to their respective ward chairmen, the lawmakers announced their exit from the ruling party, the membership through which they once sustained strong opposition against governor Dauda Lawal while the latter was in the PDP.
Their resignation, and their imminent defection to the opposition, is not only a major embarrassment to the political leaders of the state, particularly the Director-General of the Tinubu/Shatima Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari but a clear cut way indicating that all is not well in the APC in the state currently boasting of returning an overwhelming votes for President Tinubu and governor Dauda Lawal whose departure from the PDP that brought him into power to the APC early this year, was seen by many critics as the governor’s frantic effort to hold on to power and serve his second term in office.
To a large extent, the governor should take the blame for most of the negative political issues taking place in the state in the sense that he is the leader by virtue of the office he holds with full executive powers. Right from the time crisis broke in the state House of Assembly, the governor needed to call for calm and understanding but instead, he fuelled it for his own benefit.
The aggrieved members were completely ignored by the governor who vehemently refused to agree for any form of resolution while the members were busy accusing the governor of abuse of office and the legislature of constitutional rascality.
It would have been expected that when the governor defected from the PDP to the APC, the crises that characteristically existed in the Assembly would be addressed and resolved, but none of the leaders cared, instead, the affected members and their respective constituencies were thrown to the dogs despite the unshielded popularity they command among their people.
Perhaps, the governor who was assured by all those interested in the office including Matawalle under the APC in the 2027 elections had suspended their interests for him to go unchallenged, he no longer bothers about anyone else’s matter including President Tinubu’s, so long as his (Dauda) own is guaranteed.
Then comes the issue of Senator Abdul-Aziz Yari Abubakar who recently stormed Zamfara and the North-West with the PCC mandate as the DG of the campaigns, citizens of mar not be very happy with the way Yari goes around like a demi god and are silently waiting for the right time to put him in his right place.
If the camps that have been existing in favour of Yari on the one hand and in favour of Matawalle on the other is anything to by, then the bigger picture is the trouble that lies ahead against Tinubu’s return in 2027.
If care is not taken, i vividly foresee a Tinubu failing woefully in Zamfara State in the next election just because some few individuals refuse to do their part and responsibility to bring the needed results which they have always boasted of.
The blow is heaviest in Yari’s own Zamfara West Senatorial Zone, where five of the eight defectors come from, affecting five out of the six local government areas in the zone. Seen a most painful for him is the resignation of Hon. Aliyu Ango Kagara, the member representing Talata Mafara South Yari’s own local government and who has always been seen and addressed as Yari loyalists and who strong influence runs through all the other eight aggrieved members.
This is a clear signal that the APC in Zamfara is facing its most difficult moment. If the Director-General of the PCC loses his constituency in the forthcoming 2027 elections, it would go down as one of the most disastrous outings in Nigeria’s political history.
The tsunami did not spare former Governor Ahmad Sani Yariman Bakura. Hon. Ibrahim T. Tukur, representing Bakura Constituency Yarima’s home base also resigned.
Similarly, the Minister of State for Defence, Dr. Bello Matawalle, was hit by the wave. Hon. Faruk Musa Dosara, representing Maradun I Matawalle’s constituency dumped the APC. This is a serious political humiliation for a man who is known as a staunch supporter of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The present Deputy Governor, Mani Malam Mumuni, was also not spared as Hon. Bashir Abubakar Masama, Esq., representing Bukkuyum North, resigned. He shares the same polling unit with the Deputy Governor, whom he succeeded in the State House of Assembly.
The Chairman of the APC Elders Committee, Alhaji Salihu Maibuhu Gummi, a politician of over five decades, was equally hit by the resignation of Hon. Bashar Aliyu Gummi, representing Gummi I his constituency where he angrily tore his APC membership card.
By extension, this political tsunami threatens the re-election bids of Senator Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara West), Hon. Sulaiman Abubakar Mahmud Gummi (Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency), Hon. Isah Mamman Anka (Anka/Talata Mafara), Hon. Abba Ahmad Sani (Bakura/Maradun), and the incumbent Governor Dauda Lawal himself.
In Zamfara Central, the Chief of Staff to the Governor was hit when Hon. Nasiru Abdullahi Maru, representing Maru North his constituency, resigned. Sources indicate he plans to join the opposition to challenge the Chief of Staff in terms of strength, popularity and capacity in the area.
Hon. Abdulmalik Zubairu (Zannan Bungudu) also lost his State Assembly ally, Hon. Basiru Bello, representing Bungudu West. Both share the same ward and polling unit, now votes have to be split by the two power blocs.
The implication for Zamfara Central is grave. Senator Ikra Aliyu Bilbis, representing the zone, draws his strength from Maru and Bungudu the same local governments where the defectors hold sway. Governor Dauda Lawal will also feel the heat.
Zamfara North was not spared. Hon. Mukhtar Nasiru, representing Kaura Namoda North, resigned. He shares the senatorial zone with former Governor Mahmud Aliyu Shinkafi. His exit will affect the chances of Senator Sahabi Ya’u (Zamfara North), Hon. Aminu Sani Jaji (Kaura Namoda/Birnin Magaji), and Governor Dauda Lawal.
According to reliable sources, the eight lawmakers are grassroots politicians with large followership in their constituencies a formidable force capable of defeating the APC and its candidates, such grounds they tested against governor Dauda while he was in the PDP and they had to draw a battle line against the administration by plotting a strong parallel State House of Assembly that challenged all proceedings of the government recognised legislature.
It will be recalled that these lawmakers were suspended on 27th February 2024 by the Bilyaminu Moriki-led leadership of the House for alleged violation of Order 10, Rule 9 of the Assembly’s Standing Orders. The suspended members have consistently denied this, insisting they were punished for raising concerns over escalating insecurity in their constituencies.
For 31 months, they remained suspended without salaries or allowances is a clear violation of legislative procedures under Governor Dauda Lawal’s administration.
Sources reveal that several elders, Islamic scholars and prominent politicians intervened to reconcile the lawmakers with the Governor. Among them were General Aliyu Mohammed Gusau, the Zamfara State Ulama Consultative Council, former Deputy Governor Ibrahim Wakkala Muhammad, and Hon. Kabiru Ibrahim Masari, Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. All efforts were reportedly rebuffed by the Governor, who insisted on leaving them suspended until the expiration of their tenure.
The bigger challenge for the Zamfara APC, however, is the deep division among its bigwigs the dirty fight between the Matawalle camp and the Yari camp. Insiders in both camps say they will not support Governor Dauda Lawal, while his former party members are regrouping to strategize on how to vote him out.
Many political pundits also believe the Governor’s policies are harsh, particularly the aggressive revenue drive, multiple taxation, and the dismissal and termination of appointments of many citizens who are now jobless.
There is an urgent need for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene by summoning the three political gladiators in the state Matawalle, Yari and Governor Dauda Lawal to a roundtable on how to reorganize the Zamfara APC for victory. Failure to do so will definitely affect the President’s votes in the forthcoming elections.
**_Prof Abubakar Ahmad Abdullahi Political Analyst*_
About the Author
