Opinion

RE: In defense of Salihu Tanko Yakasai

Published

4 years ago

March 9, 2021

Salihu Tanko Yakasai

The above article written by Sule Yau Sule, the spokesperson of Senator Ibrahim Shekarau, might seem like a defence against my unlawful detention on 26th February 2021 in Kano, but soon after the first paragraph, it morphed into an attack on me while I was still in detention.

Though the writer superficially intended to “defend” me against the injustice meted against me for justifiably and conscientiously expressing my opinion on the current drift of the country toward cul-de-sac in apparent deviation from the vision of the ruling party to take the country away from the abyss in 2015, Sule Ya’u Sule ended up castigating me for simply exercising my constitutional rights of freedom of speech as enshrined in the constitution.

The article also bordered around ethics and professionalism of the work of a spokesperson as highlighted by the learned writer. If he had stopped there, one would have taken it objectively and picked all the lessons therein, which truly, are valid and worthy of being noted. Unfortunately, the writer digressed far away from the subject matter and delved into politics, bringing to the forefront a grudge he has been nurturing against me for over a decade, because we were on opposing sides politically with his principal when we were in the defunct ANPP.

To set the record straight, I joined APP back in December 2000 and a couple of years later, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau equally joined partisan politics and contested for the governorship election in 2003. When I joined politics, Alhaji Al-Amin Ibrahim Little was the leader of the party in the state, but when he lost the party to Shekarau and decamped to PRP, I remained in APP and went on to serve as the returning officer for Shekarau’s election, which he eventually won largely due to Buhari’s huge influence. But soon after that, Shekarau drew the line against us, Buhari’s supporters in the state, which birthed our rivalry with the Shekarau’s camp. My political mentor then was Hon. Balarabe Wakili who was instrumental in Shekarau becoming a member of the APP at that time. This was the genesis of our crises in Kano APP which led to our exit from the party in 2011 to form CPC.

I was in my mid 30s during the 2011 general elections and, of course, I went all out in my attacks on Shekarau which I later regretted and posted on my Facebook page, apologising for such a behavior; a post which is still there on my page if he wishes to look it up. I do remember Sule Ya’u Sule’s call one evening, a few days before I made the apology, and in that call, he gave me some sound advice on the choice of words whenever criticising Shekarau, a point I took to heart, and unlike what he has stated in his recent article, I have never attacked Shekarau again after that phone call till date.

Now back to the part of the article in which he has talked about ethics and what not. I am a person that take corrections to heart and I have picked all his points like a student in his class. But you see, the funny part about life is that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. Let me refresh Sule Ya’u Sule’s memory about how when he was the spokesperson of the then Governor of Kano State, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, he fabricated a letter allegedly from the EFCC claiming that Shekarau had been cleared of all charges, which turned out to be a big lie, thereby causing a huge embarrassment to his principal to the extent that he was suspended for six months only to be reinstated after several pleas and interventions.

As stated by Sule in his article, “A spokesperson’s best tools are decorum, decency, belief and passion.” So I ask Sule, is embarrassing your principal also among the tools of a spokesperson? May I also ask, what punishment did he receive from NIPR at that time? If he did not receive any, perhaps he should include it in his note to the professional body in order to come up with a suitable punishment against others that will try to emulate him and ridicule their principals with fake clearance letters.

Let me also take this opportunity to set the record straight on the issue of my comments that resulted in my unlawful detention. I neither planned it nor did I have the intention of provoking such reactions. It was a spontaneous reaction on my part triggered by a number of the recent rise of insecurity in the country particularly in the north. I have personally suffered two major security issues in the last four months; the murder of my younger sister’s husband in Bauchi in front of my sister and her kids and the kidnapping of my sister’s husband’s younger brother in his house in Kaduna. N5 million had to be paid as a ransom to secure his release and in the process of raising the money, armed robbers carted away N1 million of the amount. I was certainly not thinking about ethics when I reacted to the devastating news of the abduction of the over 300 Zamfara girls. I believe anyone with a tiny bit of conscience will certainly be moved by the abduction.

DSS Arrests Ganduje’s Special Adviser Salihu Tanko For Criticising Buhari

Perhaps Sule is too pre-occupied with enforcing PR ethics of a spokesperson that he has lost all his conscience to the extent that he cannot see that I am a human, which comes first, before any ethics or even a temporary position that I will not occupy for life.

On a final note, though Sule is a PhD holder in Mass Communications and a professional by all standards in the field, both in terms of qualifications and experience, when it comes to human relations, I believe he is merely a kindergarten pupil. If he truly regards me as a brother as he had claimed in the article, he would not have written such a politicised opinion at a moment when I was still in unlawful detention and my family and friends were equally terrified as to what might happen to me. Irrespective of whether I was out of line or not, that is certainly not the action of someone you consider a brother. I remember when I was first appointed as the Director-General, Media in 2016, the first thing I did was to pay a visit to my predecessors to seek for their blessings and guidance, namely: Baba Halilu Dantiye, late Umar Saidu Tudun Wada and Sule Ya’u Sule. Sule promised to provide me with all the support I needed to execute my work, but little did I know that he was holding a decade-long grudge against me. Indeed with friends like Sule, who needs enemies?

Salihu Tanko Yakasai (Dawisu) is the Founding Curator of the Global Shapers Community Kano Hub of the World Economic Forum.

Opinion

Let President Tinubu Rename University of Lagos After Gowon, Not Abuja

Published

4 days ago

December 18, 2024

Nigerian Tracker

Adnan Mukhtar Tudun Wada

I was not happy when Northwest University Kano was renamed to Yusuf Maitama Sule University, as student leaders of that University then, we followed the interest of the students who were also not happy with the renaming at that time for one reason; the renaming was politically motivated, to hurt the founder of the institution Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso. I was busy mobilising students to protest, the next day I was invited to the DSS for questions where I spent hours and all the people we were mobilising the protest together ran and dissociated themselves from it. I have no option but to plead with the DSS to release me, assuring them that not a single student would protest the government’s action.

The renaming has affected many students who are seeking admission abroad; it’s Northwest University on my transcript and Yusuf Maitama Sule University on my certificate. This is kinda confusing and not good at all.

Politicians should immortalise individuals in their new projects not existing ones. The renaming of the University of Abuja to Yakubu Gowon University is not good for the university’s alumni.

The President should have found a new project or built a new University by naming it after the former Head of State.

I don’t support the idea of playing politics by renaming our universities and this happens mostly in Nigeria.

Imagine waking up renaming the University of Maiduguri to Mohammed Goni University, Yobe State University to Ibrahim Geidam University, the University of Ibadan to Abiola Ajimobi University, the University of Lagos to Lateef Jakande University.

It will be bad for the alumni of the aforementioned universities to come across this.

Why is this only happening in Africa? Look at Makerere University in Uganda, it was established in 1920 but despite Yoweri Mosevenni’s long reign; he didn’t for once attempt to change it to even his name for selfish reasons.

He didn’t think of renaming the Entebbe International Airport after him but in Nigeria, we have this culture of renaming everything after individuals.

If you want to be immortalised, leave a lasting legacy as Gowon did in establishing NYSC. That enough is Okay and better than naming an institution after him.

President Tinubu should have renamed the University of Lagos after Gowon, not Abuja. I’m sure his people will reject this not for any reason but because of the large number of people that will be affected by it.

The University of Abuja Alumni were all crying over this painful decision.

Opinion

Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya: Champion of Civil Society and Good Governance in Northern Nigeria

Published

5 days ago

December 16, 2024

Nigerian Tracker

Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya, is an influential Civil Society figure in Kano State and Northern Nigeria. He is currently serving as the Executive Director, Citizens for Development and Education (CDE), he has dedicated many years of his civil society activism as advocate for the promotion of democracy, good governance, anti-corruption, peace building and women empowerment

Amb. Waiya, holds number of academic qualifications, including a Higher National Diploma in Public Administration from Kano State Polytechnic, a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, Master’s in Public International Law at Maryam Abacha, American University, Maradi, and he is currently pursuing a doctor of philosophy at Skyline University, Kano in International Relations

In the course of his career, he held several positions and managed a number of projects. He served as the Director, Alhilal Foundation, from 2003 to 2007, an organization which focused on women empowerment, through basic literacy and skills acquisition. He later coordinated the North West Zonal Office of the Mallam Aminu Kano International Foundation. Amb. Ibrahim Waiya, led and coordinated a number of Local Government Councils Elections Observation missions across 19 Northern states.

In 2011, Waiya managed the Campaign against Drug Abuse under the auspices of Northern Youth Assembly, a youth driven platform with leadership structures in the Nineteen Northern States. He served as Secretary, for both, Kano State Stakeholders Committee on Anti-Drug Abuse Campaign and Kano State Stakeholders Committee on Anti-Child Abuse, a project which was coordinated by the office of the Special Adviser, Child Welfare and National Drug Law Enforcement Agency. His involvement in election observation coordination missions and various public engagements, highlights his commitment to civic engagement towards community development, democracy and good governance

Waiya’s extensive experience includes free consultancy support services to numerous Government Ministries and Agencies such as: Kano State Ministry for Women Affairs and Social Development, Kano State Ministry for Community and Rural Development, office of the Special Adviser to the Governor of Kano State on Child Welfare, Ministry for Special duties, office of the special adviser, joint security services. He has facilitated numerous training workshops and seminars, impacting his knowledge, skills, experience on the community, particularly for community based organizations

In recognition of his contributions, he was appointed to several key positions, such as the President, of the Kano Civil Society Forum, Chairman of the Conference of Northern States Civil Society Networks, Convener, Nigeria for Peace Project, Managing partner, United Nigeria Project, Head of Secretariat, Kano Peace Committee, Secretary General, National Action for Women Agenda,(NAWA), chairman, Board of Trustees, Northern Youth Assembly, (Majalisar Matasan Arewa) Fellow, Institute of Security and Strategic Studies, Fellow, Institute of International Peace and Secure Society, Fellow, Institute of Business Diplomacy and Financial Management, member, Commission of Inquiry on Missing persons, member, Implementation Committee, on the Recommendations of the Report of the Commission of inquiry on missing persons, member, Commission of Inquiry to investigate, various political violence and cases of missing persons, that occurred in the State from 2015 – 2023, member, Commission of inquiry to investigate protest, arson and destruction of public and private properties that occurred from 1st – 10th August, 2024 Amb. Waiya, served as Consultant on various government projects, such as: Kano State Security Trust Fund, Safe Corridor, Campaign against Drug Abuse, across the 44 Local Government Council Areas. Amb. Waiya”s active participation in peace building, policy advocacy and legislative reform has continued to impact positive change in Kano State, the North and Nigeria at large.

Opinion

“I Transition to PR and Digital Marketing to Transform Brands Globally” – Ibrahim Ayyuba Isah

Published

7 days ago

December 15, 2024

Nigerian Tracker

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As 2024 comes to a close, Ibrahim Ayyuba Isah reflects on his journey from journalism to public relations (PR) and digital marketing. With over a decade of experience in media and communications, Ibrahim’s transition was fueled by a desire to empower businesses—starting with Northern Nigeria but extending globally—to build impactful narratives and achieve sustainable growth.

“Every brand, regardless of location, deserves access to the tools and expertise needed to thrive in today’s fast-paced world,” Ibrahim says. “My goal has always been to bridge the gap in strategic communication, ensuring that no business is left behind.”

From Journalism to Strategic Communication

Ibrahim’s illustrious journalism career spans over a decade, during which he served as a Senior Reporter at TVC News, covering critical developments, including the Kano State Government House for three successive administrations. His work involved breaking major news stories, producing multimedia content, and engaging audiences through digital platforms.

“I’ve always been passionate about communication, but I realized I wanted to do more than report stories—I wanted to help brands craft their own,” Ibrahim shares. “That’s what led me to pivot into PR and digital marketing.”

To equip himself for this new journey, Ibrahim pursued advanced studies, earning a Master’s in Communication Studies and a Master’s in Public Relations from Bayero University, Kano. He further honed his expertise with a Professional Certificate in Digital Marketing from the London School of Business Administration and a Master Diploma in Digital Marketing from the Digital Marketing Skills Institute. These credentials underscore his commitment to mastering the art of strategic communication.

Empowering Brands Through Ayrah Media Concept

As the CEO of Ayrah Media Concept (AMC), Ibrahim leads a PR and creative agency that provides businesses with tailored solutions, including PR consulting, social media management, corporate campaigns, and digital marketing.

“My vision is to empower brands to connect with their audiences, tell compelling stories, and achieve global relevance,” Ibrahim explains. “Through AMC, we’re showing businesses—whether in Northern Nigeria or beyond—that they can reach new heights with the right strategies.”

In 2024, AMC worked on several impactful campaigns, including Ibrahim’s role as a Lead Consultant for the WOFAN-ICON2 project in partnership with Mastercard Foundation, where he developed and executed PR and communication strategies to amplify the project’s impact.

Changing Perceptions and Building Bridges

Transitioning into PR and digital marketing came with challenges, including shifting perceptions about its value.

“Many businesses see PR and digital marketing as optional rather than essential,” Ibrahim says. “But the results are transformative. Strategic communication is not just about visibility; it’s about building trust, credibility, and lasting connections with your audience.”

This philosophy drives Ibrahim’s approach, ensuring that businesses of all sizes—whether local startups or established corporations—can access high-quality PR and marketing services.

Looking Ahead

Ibrahim’s vision for the future extends far beyond regional boundaries. While his roots and passion lie in Northern Nigeria, his focus is on creating strategies that resonate globally.

“Brands in Kano, Lagos, Abuja, or even New York share a common goal: to connect with people and make an impact,” he says. “My mission is to ensure that every business, regardless of size or location, has the tools and strategies to achieve that.”

In 2025, Ibrahim plans to document his professional journey in a book that will explore his experiences as a journalist and PR expert, offering insights into the evolving landscape of communication and its role in business success.

A Message of Gratitude

As he reflects on the year, Ibrahim expresses his gratitude to those who have supported his journey. “I’m incredibly thankful to my mentors, collaborators, and clients who have believed in my vision. Together, we’ve shown that impactful communication has the power to transform lives and businesses.”

With a clear vision and an unwavering commitment to excellence, Ibrahim Ayyuba Isah is poised to lead the way in redefining PR and digital marketing, not just in Nigeria but across the globe.