News

APC Patriotic Volunteers Misinformation, Where Usman Alhaji Got it wrong

Published

10 months ago

June 13, 2025

One should ‘ve overlooked the press briefing by the former Secretary to the Government of Kano State, Alhaji Usman Alhaji under the banner of “APC Patriotic Volunteers”, in which he accused the government of Kano State of lack of clear policy direction, petty sentiments, and incompetence in managing the state affairs.

His assessment of the 2-Year NNPP Administration in Kano State, Alhaji Usman Alhaji, was unjustifiably harsh on Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf’s administration, accusing it of bad governance and non performance.

However, while ignoring such weighty accusations without clarifications, it will amount to giving it a tacit approval. In essence, it is like supporting the misinformation and distortion of facts.
Alhaji Usman Alhaji’s vituperation is like “the ranting of an ant.” As a “political figure’ who held various political positions, there is no doubt experiencing a fall from grace to grass, is indeed painful

It is obvious that he is gasping for political relevance, hoping to bounce back into the circle of politically relevant personalities in the State and in the country, at large

The best way to describe his predicament is the Hausa proverb that says “Tururuwa in taso lalacewa fukafuki ta kan yi,” meaning “if an ant is about to lose relevance, it will develop wings.”
A cursory look at Alhaji Usman Alhaji’s political history would reveal like an ant whose time was up, how he has been gradually losing relevance due to his serial election loses and lack of political impact even at the lowest grassroots level.

Although Alhaji Usman Alhaji
This is a man who has assigned to key important positions in politics. He was General Secretary of National Republican Convention (NRC), a National Political Party. He also served as Education Commissioner in Kano State and later became Secretary to the State Government, yet it was evident all these positions he held were never impactful, as they were all acquired not through dent of hard work but through political consensus and negotiations. All his records of political contests had resulted in failure, a development that perhaps explained his deep frustrations and why he is suddenly drifting to the depths of irrelevance and is currently hanging on a Kangaroo and Mushroom Political Support Group to regain his feet.

A further close examination of Alhaji Usman Alhaji’s political life would reveal how he is gradually undergoing a sense of political decline with diminishing relevance and is equally experiencing a fall from prominence to irrelevance

How can a politician who has occupied key positions in political parties at national and state levels lack a visible political structure but are suddenly reduced to holding a banner of a support group?

His tale is a perfect description of a person experiencing a significant decline and downfall from a position of success as appointee, holding a position of power and influence to a state of minimal importance, effectiveness and relevance.

A politician who has been reduced to such level and is now gasping for air through a pressure group can best be described as someone drifting from political peak to a political pit.

The misinformation and distortion of facts he rather chose to profess is perhaps borne out of these political frustrations, which is associated with his sudden decline and irrelevance, as he is currently experiencing.

In the year 2007, Alhaji Usman Alhaji ran for the Senate under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but lost to Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya

He equally contested for the Senate under the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in 2011, yet he lost the election.
During the 2015 election, he was one of the most visible aspirants in terms of publicity, but unknown to many, he was a paper tiger, bargaining for an appointment. He stepped down for Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje who was in the gubernatorial election but was compensated with the position of SSG.

Psychologists are of the view that the psychological impact of repeated electoral defeats can lead to increased stress and anxiety levels, as they can potentially affect a person’s mental health and decision-making abilities.

While serial losses of elections may erode a politician’s confidence and his abilities to perform, it thus makes it more challenging for him to bounce back and regain momentum in his political career. His situation can also lead to the loss of public support and can add to the stress and pressure on his political life and emotional distress, which can be substantial, and can potentially lead to feelings of disappointment, frustration, and despair, as in the case of Alhaji Usman Alhaji, who had a free fall from national relevance to a state of obscurity.

For almost eleven years, Alhaji Usman Alhaji had held the position of secretary to the Kano State Government (SSG).
The first four years were under Engineer Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso and the remaining years under Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.

Let’s look at his antecedents and performance. His performance has been dismally low, falling short of expectations, with no record of significant achievements and policy direction. Engineer Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso tolerated him and gave his administration a clear direction, while the Ganduje administration caved into failure along with him.

This is a man who was privileged to hold key positions in his educational career and later in political circle, but, one can see how desperate he is holding to a Kangaroo political support group to gain prominence.

It’s worth noting that politicians like this are not immune to the emotional and psychological effects of repeated failures. Hence, there is no doubt that Alhaji Usman Alhaji has been the case. His narration is a tale of a politician betraying his State while biting the figures that fed him, showing a difference between dignity and political desperation.

However, despite his antics, if you keep your ears to the ground, you will hear the footsteps of NNPP Administration, under Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf on education, healthcare development, agricultural revolution and a lot more.

The impact is clear and palpable. The people of Kano State are happy with the leadership of His Excellency, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, and the administration performance is outstanding.

Muhammad Salis
State Coordinator,
Nigeria Democracy Working Team
12th June, 2025

News

Terrorist Logistics Suppliers Apprehended in Borno

Published

8 hours ago

March 25, 2026

Nigerian Tracker

By Yusuf Danjuma Yunusa

Troops of Operation Hadin Kai, OPHK, have apprehended 18 suspected logistics suppliers allegedly enroute Gubio, with plans to proceed to the Gudumbali axis, a known Boko Haram terrorists, BHTs, enclave.

This is contained in a daily operational report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria on Wednesday.

The military said the suspects were intercepted while travelling towards the location to deliver the goods to the terrorists.

According to the report, preliminary investigation revealed that all 18 suspects confessed to engaging in the supply of goods to the terrorist group.

“They admitted that they routinely purchase and convey items to the terrorists.

“Their justification was lack of employment, which points to a deeper socio-economic challenge in Maiduguri and its environs,” the army said.

The development, according to the reportt, validates recent remarks by the Chief of Defence Staff on the link between economic hardship and the sustenance of insurgency logistics networks.

“The arrest highlights the critical role of civilian collaborators in sustaining terrorist operations, particularly in remote areas such as Gubio and Gudumbali,” it added.

The army called for a comprehensive approach combining military operations with economic empowerment and job creation to address the root causes of insurgency in the region.

News

Kano Gov’t Offers Study Scholarship to SWAN Members

Published

15 hours ago

March 25, 2026

Nigerian Tracker

By Abdulgafar Oladimeji

Kano state government has facilitated and supported members of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria, SWAN Kano chapter to proceed to pursue professional certification courses in sports journalism, our correspondent reports .

The Special Adviser , youths and sports to Kano state governor, Sani Musa Danja, disclosed that the offer covers their tuition fees.

He said , the beneficiaries have been identified and their enrolment process have been completed.

According to him, through interactions with stakeholders , the decision was reached for some sports writers, who are faced with the challenge of acquiring the required professional qualification to practice their trade should be given support to fill the gap.

said, findings have revealed that , for Kano sports writers to compete favorably there exists the urgent need to empower members of the association to acquire certain requisite qualification to enable them feature amongst the best in Nigeria and beyond.

Danja speaking, when he hosted SWAN members in his office , located within the premises of Kano state Library Complex, along Ahmadu Bello Way said that the state government, under Abba Kabir Yusuf , on discovering this major challenge , acted swiftly to address the lapses, by offering to sponsor 10 SWAN members to pursue professional diploma in Sports Journalism at El Roi London University.

In his word “ we give thanks to almighty Allah for his mercies, I want to thank our mentor and leader, his excellency governor, Abba Kabiru Yusuf , who made this possible.

“his excellency takes the issue of empowering our people very seriously, the challenge facing our sports journalists is principally the issue of professional certification, some of our sports journalists have their degrees in other fields, but we are aware that, they also require to obtain certain minimum qualification in journalism or other related fields to help them to excel .

“in line with the policy of the government of his excellency, we have moved in to make sure , these sons and daughter of Kano overcome this hinderance that may hinder their professional progress.

“the sports media is the back bone of sports development and sports promotion, our government is focused and committed to support and reshape the sports media to achieve the set out goal to empower Kano youths through sports.

“the mission of his excellency through this gesture is to empower our professional sports journalists and give them the required qualification to continue with their pursuit to upward steadily representation of Kano state in that sector.

Danja hinted that, Kano state government remains unrepentant in its upward investment drive to create a generation of professionals that would keep the state afloat on the terrain of quality and abundance human resources.

Reacting, chairman SWAN Kano chapter, comrade Zahradeen Saleh thanked the state government for the support.

He said, the scholarship offer is an major step towards uplifting the practice of sports journalism in the state.

He said the dividends of sports could only accrue with the effective operations of the sporting press through the training and re-training of sports writers.

He admitted that, acquiring the requisite qualification to practice sports journalism has been one of the major challenges confronting members of the association.

“ our members who are the beneficiaries of this offer are youths, on completion of the professional course, they will have stable professional growth and would be better equipped to contribute their quota to the development of the state.” Zahradeen said .

News

Obi Raises Alarm Over Arrest of Cleric Who Hosted Him in Kaduna

Published

2 days ago

March 24, 2026

Nigerian Tracker

By Yusuf Danjuma Yunusa

Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, has condemned the arrest of a Muslim cleric who hosted him over the weekend, describing the incident as a sign of deepening threats to civil liberties in Nigeria.

In a statement shared on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Tuesday, Obi said he was notified that Sheikh Ahmad Tijjani Umar was taken into custody by security operatives shortly after their meeting in Kaduna on Sunday.

“This development underscores the deeply troubling state of our nation and our democracy, where freedom of speech and movement is increasingly threatened, and where citizens and perceived political opponents face harassment and unnecessary persecution,” Obi wrote.

The former Anambra governor warned that such actions risk eroding Nigeria’s democratic foundations if left unchecked. He urged authorities to uphold the rule of law and refrain from tactics that intimidate dissent.

“This country must defend freedom and free speech, which are the hallmarks of every democratic society. Suppression and intimidation of dissent can never stand in a democratic society, and this Nigerian government must understand this fact,” he added.

Obi called on those “bent on undermining our already fragile democracy” to desist and adhere to democratic principles in dealing with citizens.

As of Tuesday morning, security agencies had not issued an official statement regarding the cleric’s arrest or the circumstances leading to it. Sheikh Umar, a respected religious figure in Kaduna, has not been publicly charged.