FCT MINISTER, BALA MOHAMMED'S GUBER AMBITION SUFFERS A MAJOR SETBACK

-THE POWERFUL FORCES AGAINST HIM

-THE ISA YUGUDA AND ADAMU MUAZU'S CONNECTION

Bala Mohammed

FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed is currently fighting the battle of his political career. His lifelong ambition of becoming the governor of his state, Bauchi is being resisted by powerful forces beyond his control. Bala Mohammed's political trajectory had always been fraught with excellence and sheer luck. From an unknown politician in his home state of Bauchi, he became a Senator on the ticket of the ANPP after defeating the then Governor of the state, Adamu Muazu, who wanted to go to the Senate after serving two terms as a governor. Bala Mohammed has since decamped to the ruling party, PDP. This was after he left the Senate and got appointed as a Minister by President Goodluck Jonathan. Ever since then, Bala has remained unshakeable, given his closeness to two most influential people in Nigeria – the Senate President, Senator David Mark who nominated him in the first place, and the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan.

Gov. Isa Yuguda

The ELITES gathered that Bala was alleged to have been at war with his state Governor, Isa Yuguda, over some issues, which were not unconnected control of the power structure in the state. Bala was particularly peeved with Yuguda’s act of profligacy with the state’s resources. 

Somehow, the two politicians decided to lay aside their feud after a while. The decision was made after Bala realised that Governor Yuguda might turn out to be a clog in the wheel in his gubernatorial ambition.

Adamu Muazu

It was gathered that after Bamanga Tukur lost out and was forced to resign as the National Chairman of the PDP, the governors from the North West region were reported to have influenced the choice of the next party chairman. At this point, Governor Yuguda was willing to mend fences with his erstwhile political foe, Adamu Muazu. Invariably, he joined his other colleagues and they threw their weight behind the choice of Muazu, who eventually became the National Chairman of the PDP.

Having been worsted in an election by the FCT Minister, Adamu Muazu, according to reports is not ready to forgive so easily, notwithstanding the gifts that have exchanged hands between him and Bala Mohamed.

The ELITES gathered that the three major actors in the unfolding drama- Isa Yuguda, Adamu Muazu and Bala Mohammed are from the same senatorial district. The implication of this is that the same district had produced the two governors,(Muazu and Yuguda), with Muazu, serving two terms, and the incumbent, (Yuguda) also likely to spend another four years in office. Based on this, the powerbrokers in the state have been harping it on the duo of Yuguda and Muazu, that it will be politically suicidal to pick another man from the same zone for another four years, while there are two other zones in the state that are yet to produce a governor in the last twelve years now. 

Reports have it that these issues serve as the basis of the negotiation that Bala might as well continue to serve as a minister, rather than step down to start his campaign. Although the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan has been one of the forces pushing for his candidature, Bala Mohammed’s dream of becoming the next Governor of Bauchi State might have gone with the wind. Except of course, a miracle happens.