By Sani Ibrahim
The late Ibrahim Baban Kowa, a one-time police chief in the Nigerian police command who was assigned by the NPC led the federal government to crush the political unrest in the southwestern region of Nigeria, described the words operation wetie” as the cruelest and inhuman political killings, initiated and executed in the western region of Nigeria as a result of the political crisis caused by what people felt as acts of open injustice meted on poor and defenseless masses by the cheap political power mongers with personal aggrandizement”.
In a broad daylight (as he further reiterated) “human beings particularly opposition party members were chased, caught, tied down, bathed with gasoline and petrol and then set ablaze by political party thugs. While they shout, cry, and scream, their lives have to be mercilessly exterminated along with human-made inferno”.
This was part of the reasons that earned the western region a popular title in the history of Nigerian politics as a “wild wild west”.
The terrible events in the western region originated in 1962 due to the political rift between Samuel L. Akintola and Chief Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo, which led to the break down of law and order and the subsequent enforcement of a state of emergency in the region.
Akintola was removed and Dr M.A.Majokundumi a gynecologist was appointed as the premier of the western region.
Samuel Akintola protested against his removal, and after due consideration, he was reinstated in January 1963. Awolowo and twelve others were charged to court and sentenced to between 10-15 years imprisonment for their alleged involvement in the importation of firearms to overthrow the federal government of Nigeria.
Tinubu Commissions Kano Anti-Corruption Office
In October 1965, comes the western regional election had severe and devastating results very similar to that of the Kano 2019 governorship election of 9th March. A glaring winner, Engr Abba Kabir Yusuf with more than 26,000 votes merging was shamelessly robbed of his mandate in the open daylight before the watching Nigerians and the world political observers.
Thugs were used to killing Kano people to install the widely hated and unpopular person as governor of Kano State. While seeking redress in courts from tribunal to Supreme Court, the experiences were much more severe than the after-effects of the election itself!!!
When it becomes clear that the 1965 regional election was marred with so many irregularities and open daylight robbery of people’s mandate. This time around affected people refuse to go to court and seek redress, instead, they took the law into their hands.
Riots become widespread, looting, killings, arson were prevalent. Party thugs will tie people down, pour gasoline on them, and then set them ablaze.
This situation persisted until Jan 15th, 1966 when the Nigerian 1st military coup was carried out and the democratically elected government was overthrown.
The military intervention marked the end of the operation we tie that left behind a permanent legacy of liberating the political system of Yoruba land in the southwestern region of Nigeria. The events of 1983 between Bola Ige and Akin Omoboriowo furthermore confirmed that.
Therefore, the alleged involvement of Bola Ahmad Tinubu in the 2019 Kano governorship election was perceived from many different viewpoints, firstly as a gross political blunder and miscalculation particularly on the APC bid for the 2023 presidential election. The Buhari-led APC government has simply missed the bearing by taking the wrong side of the coin through the wrongful installation of the most unpopular person upon the Kano people.
The man Ganduje has plainly lost the election and was voted out of government House with a merging of more than 26,000 votes. By 2023, this man has nothing less to offer.
Secondly, Kano people have witnessed the worst ever political madness, a very unusual and unexpected experience that has instinctively changed the course of Kano politics in this dispensation.
Thirdly, the entire progressive politicians in northern Nigeria, having realized the danger and implication of open injustice meted on Kano people by the Buhari APC led federal government has turned their sympathy and total allegiance to the Kano based PDP under the able leadership of Engr Dr. Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso who had resisted every temptation to set Kano ablaze.
This is because it was the insane desire by the enemies within and outside Kano to ensure our political and economic destruction, but unfortunately for them, the situation was saved by divine intervention.
