Adamawa: What You Need To Know About Major Gubernatorial Candidates

No fewer than 15 governorship candidates in Adamawa State fielded by political parties will be contesting to take over from Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, on Saturday, March 11.

Adamawa, which is the home of former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, alongside other states in the country will choose a new leadership to tackle the various challenges/ problems plaguing the state.

Interestingly, a female contender, unlike other states, is amongst the major governorship candidates battling for the governorship position in the state.  In this article, Naija News highlights a brief biography of the four major contenders.

Aishatu Binani (All Progressive Congress)

Born 11 August 1971, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Adamawa State, Senator Aishatu Binani is an individual whose regardless of the darkness of the times, have sparked hope in the hearts with her courageous dare to represent women in an institution greatly dominated by men,

Binani is the only female senator from the whole of Northern Nigeria came first in the Adamawa APC governorship election, beating prestigious individuals like Nuhu Ribadu, the first Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC); Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow, the immediate past governor of Adamawa state, and Abdurrazaq Namdas, a member of the House of Representatives.

Aisha, who is a founder of Binani Nigeria Limited, a Group of Companies aimed at boosting and revamping the economy of the North East Region, started her political journey in 2011 as a member of the People’s Democratic Party, formerly a member of the House of Representatives representing the Yola North/Yola South/Girei federal constituency.

Ahmadu Fintiri (People Democratic Party)

Born on October 27th, 1967 to the family of Alhaji Umar Madami at Magadali, Fintiri who is presently the governor of Adamawa State was a member of the state house of assembly where he later served as the speaker.

Governor Fintiri became the acting governor of the state following the impeachment of Murtala Nyako, the former governor, in July 2014. He would later win the governorship election in 2019 to begin his tenure as substantive governor, two months later.

Ahmadu Fintiri holds a post-graduate Diploma in Policy and Strategic Studies, from the University of Maiduguri in 2004 after obtaining his first degree in History from the same University in 1992.

After running his private business for years, he was elected to represent Madagali Constituency in 2007 and re-elected in 2011.

He held several leadership positions in the House of Assembly before being elected as the Speaker, a position he held until 2015. Ahmadu Fintiri also, twice, acted as governor of Adamawa State. He first became acting governor following the impeachment of then-Governor Murtala Nyako in July 2014.

Umar Madawaki (Labour Party)

The gubernatorial candidate of Labour Party (LP) Umar Mustapha Muqaddas is a former assistant Lecturer cum entrepreneur who has no record of serving in any position in government, but had contested to be the governorship candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) where he lose out which led to his demise from the party.

He also adopted the APC presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in Saturday’s election.

Muhammadu Tahir (New Nigeria People’s Party)

Tahir, is a former Deputy Governor of Adamawa and Senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN) who is contesting the governorship race in Adamawa on the platform of New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) Governorship candidate in the state.

Muhammadu, before his defection from the People Democratic Party (PDP) was a strong contributor to the support base of Atiku Abubakar, a former Nigeria’s vice president, and presidential candidate of the party for the 2023 general elections.