Between The Devil And Deep Blue Sea: Fintiri's Irreversible, Treacherous Journey To APC
Barring any unforseen circumstance, Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri's inevitable journey from his party the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) will crystalize in a couple of days or weeks as investigation by this paper confirmed that the Adamawa State governor has finished last minutes touches to seal the deal with his proposed party.
Findings by this paper indicated that although Fintiri knows that the journey to APC is fraught with danger and uncertainties, nevertheless his decision to take the plunge has been finalized due to certain political considerations.
"The journey of Fintiri from PDP to APC is the most difficult political decision he has to make since joining partisan politics. He knows that for the first time his political strength will face real litmus test and may denudes a weak political underbelly. But despite the odds and the dangers involved, Fintiri has no option other than to take the dangerous plunge," a PDP stalwart in Adamawa who does not want his name in print revealed.
Our source revealed that right now Fintiri is on the edge of a political clip and at a dangerous crossroad for the fact that circumstances and the need for survival have compelled him to embrace his worst political rivals.
"If wishes were horses, Fintiri will never touch APC with 100 mile pole because the party is the natural enclave of his sworn political enemies. But because of survival instincts and other plausible reasons, he has forced himself to take the challenge as a last resort," the source added.
Based on circumstances according to our source, Fintiri is left with three hard choices; defecting to APC, defecting to ADC, bankrolling an existing political party or remaining in PDP.
The source said amongst the three options, remaining in PDP will be Fintiri's worst mistake as the party which is smarting from the mosaic of self inflicted internal upheavals has already dissipated and has lost the viability and strength to compete favourably in future elections.
The source told our reporter that the most viable political option left for Fintiri is to join the ADC, a coalition mid-wifed by one of Fintiri's political benefactors and former vice president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar.
But the governor was said to avoid the option like a plague considering how he back stabbed Atiku despite being one of the major pillars behind Fintiri's electoral successes in 2019 and 2023.
Fintiri also avoided the option of bankrolling an existing party because of the fear that the move will expose his political weakness occasioned by dearth of viable political structure and a fractured or non committed followership. It was revealed that based on the foregoing challenges, Fintiri has to force himself to enter an unrequited romance with the APC despite the glaring dangers and palpable insecurity.
This paper learnt that the most important factor behind Fintiri's resolve to embrace APC is the need to secure a soft landing after his tenure in office which insiders say was replete with questionable and opaque transactions.
Upon the expiration of his second term, it is expected that the EFCC will swiftly reopen his fraud case which was at an advanced stage. For the fear of being hounded like el-Rufai, Malami and Tambuwal, Fintiri is said to be threading softly because as a lone ranger, he can never muster the kind of support and sympathy that El-Rufai is getting in his ongoing attrition against the federal government.
As expected, Fintiri's sojourn into the APC, a party with about 80 percent support base from the dominant Hausa-Fulani strongholds, will automatically lose the recognition and goodwill that a leader needs to succeed.
This paper learnt that when the news of Fintiri's purported defection to APC filtered, the leadership of a powerful APC pressure group, the progressive elders council held a meeting with the national chairman were they purportedly told him in black and white that they will never accept Fintiri as the leader of the party in the event of defection.
In the same vein, a number of stakeholders in the party including Abdurrahman Kwacham, and recently former minister of foreign affairs, Dr Idi Hong also told Fintiri to perish the taught of becoming the party leader in the event of his defection.
They unanimously assert their loyalty and recognition to Mallam Nuhu Ribadu who has over the years championed the course of the party even in the face of ceaseless animosity by the Fintiri's led government.
There is also the possibility that Fintiri will move into the APC without majority of his natural foot soldiers especially proponents and supporters of the Gongola Peoples Forum, an ethic pressure contraption reincarnated by Fintiri to neutralize the Fulani's hegemonic grip and to restore the place of the ethnic nationalities within Adamawa State power configuration through the creation of more chiefdoms and Emirates.
To the proponents of the GPF, the action of Fintiri to align with their arch enemies is an unpardonable sin and a betrayal of trust built on purpose. It is therefore expected that most of Fintiri's core support base from this block will rather pitch their tent with ADC, SDP and other viable alternatives.
"Without hedging or the fear of being contradicted, I stand to tell you that 90 percent of the GPF elements will never follow Fintiri to APC. In fact, they are viewing his actions as the worst political travesty. These people will rather lose their political relevance than to shift to APC and I assure you they will fight Fintiri with the last drop of their blood.
"I want to tell you that most ethnic nationalities who were die-hards of Fintiri will shun him; first on account of failure of political patronage and now on a more nuanced and fundamental reason, Fintiri's rapport with the Hausa-Fulani establishment," another source said.
Our source added "even within the APC, a consensus has been settled to allow Fintiri to also enlist his supporters in the e-registration of the party before according him any position.
"I want you to take this seriously, I will support Fintiri with the leadership of the party if he succeeds in enlisting 20,000 membership into the party even though that number is grossly insignificant compared to the 450,000 members of the party.
"All the noise he is making about having the control of the political landscape, party and government machinery is a ruse. What I mean is, giving Fintiri the leverage to register his support base will subject him to the worst popularity test in his checkered political career," our source added.
In this regard it is also speculated that Fintiri's romance with the APC will cost him the Christian support, which is one of his core support base. Insiders reveal that there is an unwritten gentleman's agreement between Christian Association of Nigeria in Adamawa State and Fintiri to the effect that he will hand over the leadership of the state to a Christian. But that pact if it ever existed will only be fulfilled in the breach as APC will always support a Muslim candidate going by established records.
Investigations and information pieced from sources close to the governor indicated that Fintiri has in anticipation of the irreversible journey convened a high powered stakeholders meeting with the state PDP machinery last Saturday and informed stakeholders about the his inevitable political shift to the APC.
During the crucial meeting which took place at the Dougirei seat of power attended by critical stakeholders, Fintiri was said to burst the bubble by openly disclosing his next political destination. Although it was learnt that the stakeholders allegedly endorsed the move, nevertheless majority of them receive the information with a pinch of salt because of the fact that their own survival was not factored.
"Even though the stakeholders endorsed the governor's decision without challenge, majority of them expressed dismay that the governor failed to factor them in the emerging power calculus in the event of his defection to the APC.
"That singular failing is threatening to tear the governor's support base because while trying to protect his political future, the governor is carelessly exposing and endangering his support base on the alter of his personal survival," the source added.
