Behold, Bello Mohammad Matawalle, the PDP man who’ll be Zamfara Governor from May 29

By Damola Emmanuel

Nothing better captures the man’s ascendancy to the top job of Governor of Zamfara State than the age-long African idiom that he who the gods have ordained King nobody can stop.

On Monday March 11, 2019, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, through the returning officer for Zamfara State, Professor Kabiru Bala of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Alhaji Mukhtar Shehu Idris, winner of the March 9, 2019 gubernatorial poll.

Idris, according to INEC, scored 534,541 votes to defeat his closest rival and candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Dr. Bello Muhammad Matawalle, who got 189,452. In the same poll, the candidate of the National Rescue Movement, NRM, Senator Seidu Dansadau, scored 15,177 while Abdullahi Shinkafi of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, got 3,865.

However, on Friday, the Supreme Court thrashed APC’s victory on Friday when it annulled the party’s votes in all polls in the last general elections.

In voiding the APC’s victories in the state, the apex court said the APC didn’t conduct valid primaries in the build-up to the 2019 general elections in Zamfara.

The ruling vacated the judgement of the Court of Appeal, Sokoto Division, which had held that no valid primaries were conducted by the APC in Zamfara State. The Supreme Court, therefore, ordered that the candidate with the second highest number of votes in the election, and who meets the constitutional requirement in terms of geographical spread, be declared winner.

That game-changing decision by the apex court catapaulted Matawalle to the top job of Zamfara State Governor. Many of the 49-year-old new Governor-elect’s fans consider the change of fortune for him a sweet reward for his years of active political activities at both local and national levels; and contributions to the development of his native Zamfara.

For over 20 years, Matawalle, who holds the chieftaincy title of Matawallen Maradun, had, in the last 20 years held, among other positions, been commissioner and member of the House of Representatives.

PROFILE

Born in Maradun, headquarters of Maradun Local Government Area of Zamfara State, to the family of Alhaji Muhammadu Sharu, on December 20, 1969, Matawalle attended Thames Valley University, London, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, VTC Bunza, and Maradun Township Primary School.

Among others, the Governor-elect had worked with the then Sokoto State Ministry of Health, taught at  the Government Girls College, Moriki and Kwatarkoshi, before joining the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Abuja, where he served till he plunged into politics in 1998 under the defunct United Nigeria Congress Party, UNCP.

The UNCP was one of the five political parties approved by the defunct administration of the late dictator, General Sani Abacha to participate in the state assembly elections of December 1997, in which it won many elections, and in parliamentary elections held in April 1998.

Married to Hajiya Sadiya, Hajiya Fatimatu, Hajiya Balkisu and Hajiya Fadimatu and blessed with children, Bello Muhammad served severally as Commissioner for Ministry for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Ministry for Environment, Ministry for Rural Development and and Ministry for Youth and Sport in Zamfara State-all between May 1999 to May 2003.

Muhammad was, between May 2003-2007,  elected as member representing Bakura/Maradun Federal Constituency under All Nigerian Peoples Party, ANPP. While in the House of Representatives, the Governor-elect served as chairman, House Committee on Ethics and Privileges, Deputy Minority Whip and chairman, House ad-hoc committee on Marine Security and Safety Commission.

Between 2007- 2011, the Matawallen Maradun was in the House of Reps, where he represented Bakura/Maradun Federal Constituency. In 2009, decamped to the PDP on which platform he won his third term into the Green Chamber of the National Assembly.