During the heat of the race for the governor’s seat in Adamawa in 2018, the then first family became a subject of the news media and the rumour mill.
During the heat of the race for the governor’s seat in Adamawa in 2018, the then first family became a subject of the news media and the rumour mill.T narrative then was that Aisha Buhari, Nigeria’s then first lady, wanted to impose her brother on the people of her home state – Adamawa, whose then governor, Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow, was also seeking a re-election on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
But what many did not know was that even with the opportunity to exploit his relationship with the first family, Dr Mahmood Halilu Ahmed, mni, Aisha’s younger brother, decided like he had always done to pursue his aspiration with the same conviction that has propelled him in life – to let his qualities, goals and achievements speak for him. Though many people had thought he had reached out to his sister to soften the path for him, as most humans in his shoes would have done without any guilt, Modi, as he is popularly known, did not take that route.
In fact, as he narrated in an encounter after the whole process, he went into the contest as an ordinary citizen that was desirous of rescuing his people. Modi, like other contestants, went through the processes, although he would later find out the process itself had been skewed to favour the person of choice for the party’s leadership. But even when the handwriting was becoming clear on the wall, Modi did not exploit any of the privileges at his disposal; including that of his sister, the president’s wife nor his personal relationship with the then party’s national chairman (Senator Adams Oshiomhole). In fact, to avoid being caught up in the situation where he could be compelled to take advantage of these relationships, Modi did not visit Oshiomhole since he purchased the form, so that he wouldn’t be compelled to favour him. In fact, he recalled that he did not consult his sister before going into it. With his political structure on the ground, he decided to contest when they (Buhari and his wife) were outside the country; when they were in China, as he recalled. He did not contact them on the telephone nor consult with them in any way but like every other citizen with an aspiration to better the lots of the people, decided to buy the form and throw his hat into the ring.
While most persons close to the seat of power found it difficult to rock the boat by speaking up against perceived wrong decisions of government, Modi at several times, took judicious advantage of his relationship with the then first family to bring to the ears of the then President the real feelings of Nigerians about certain policies of his government. In his own little ways, he constantly looks for ways to communicate the stark truth and it is this his straightforwardness and candidness that not only earned him the respect of the former president but direct and unfettered access to him.
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