HAMIDU SABO looks at the rising fame of the PDM in Katsina state and the likely effect it will have on the political permutation of the state
He who seeks equity must come with clean hand, is a common phrase that tends towards justice and even reminds people of the need to be just and as well evolve a just society for an enduring peace. This is expected to bare as political activities towards the 2015 general elections, begin to unfold. Characteristically, major political actors and gladiators from all parts of the country are oiling their political machinery to get power.
The situation is not different in Katsina where political activities are fast picking up with various political camps aligning and re-aligning in readiness for the big political battle. As it is, the dominant political parties at the moment are the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM), the All Progressives Congress (APC) as well as the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
From this setting therefore, the 2015 political scenario in the state will be very interesting as it will be exciting. Reason being that the PDP, a new political party, has Senator Yakubu Lado Danmarke as its major pillar, while the APC has former Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari as its godfather and the PDP with the power of incumbency at its disposal. Before now, political pundits are seeing the political fight as a two way affair between the PDP and the APC.
Recent political happenings across the state have however revealed the quick inroad made by the PDM towards taking a large chunk of political support in the state. The successes so far recorded in making the PDM a factor in the state politics should be solely attributed to the political sagacity of Danmarke. Senator Danmarke started his political career as a councilor in his Kankara local government before eventually becoming the chairman of the local council in 1999.
In 2003, Danmarke was elected a member of the National Assembly representing Kankara-Faskari–Sabuwa Federal Constituency and in 2007 and was elected as a Senator representing Southern Katsina State in the Senate. His relevance was much felt in the nation’s political space when in 2011, against all bookmakers’ prediction to temporarily emerge the defunct Congress for Progressive Change(CPC ). He was later stripped of the ticket which was handed over to former Speaker, House of Representatives, Aminu Bello Masari. The former speaker’s choice which did not go down well with the Lado camp, greatly affected Masari’s performance in the 2011 gubernatorial election in the state.
Political pundits postulated that any political arrangement in the state that ignore the Danmarke factor is doing so at its own peril.
The former lawmaker is from the popular Danmarke political family that for long played a dominant role in Katsina politics. Danmarke was trained in the art of grassroots political mobilization by his father, and this training has played a major factor in his numerous political escapades. His type of political mobilization includes a face-to-face contact with the downtrodden masses at the grassroots and forming a reliable and loyal political structure.
It was observed that shortly after deciding to join the PDM, Damarke did not take long to make a political statement as he only collapsed his political structures into the PDM. Few months after, it was obvious to all that in terms of visibility, PDM is dominating the political environment. There is no town in Katsina where you will not witness the ever growing influence of PDM. It was only recently that the PDM received over 5, 000 supporters in Daura local government area. And just penultimate week, the PDM made a major inroad in the Southern zone where thousands of people left the PDP and APC to join the PDM.
A new strategy in the art of political mobilization was initiated by Danmarke as he now moves around under the cover of the night to visit politicians and other stakeholders to woo their support for his fast growing party in the state. Feelers from his political camp indicated that not just politicians out of government but even those serving the government were meeting with him to build and broaden a new political base in the state.
As other political parties in the state fight over who will be what, the PDM has successfully conducted its membership registration drive. It is clear that the PDM is enjoying the political altercations in other parties as its membership drive continues to increase. As a testimony to PDM’s growing influence in the state, the party has offices in all towns and villages across the 34 local governments of the state.
A recent membership registration exercise of the party shows that the PDM has over a million supporters in the state, a premise he intended to build on his 60% support base by pulling out of the defunct CPC. Similarly, the party has former executives of the defunct CPC as its major backers. The state chapter of the party is led by the former CPC chairman, Dr. Yusha’u Armaya’u, former speaker of the defunct Kaduna state House of Assembly, Barrister Mamman Abubakar Danmusa, Senator Abdu ‘Yandoma among others.
With this, the political struggle in Katsina would be a mouth watering encounter. It is a political fight that will not be dominated by the old political horses. The PDM has gradually carved for itself a political niche that would surely act as a stimulant of shaping the political future of the state in 2015. Considering the sweeping reputation of the PDM, Katsina will certainly be a state to watch in the next election year.