Balarabe Musa: Tireless Crusader for Good Governance
By Paul Uwadima
Irrepressible opposition leader, Alhaji Balarabe Musa is one of Nigeria’s great minds that have committed their lives to the quest for an egalitarian society where the downtrodden are paid special attention in order to lift them up from poverty.
In a country where most of the leaders are rent seekers, Musa stands out as a man of integrity, honour and totally devoted to the building of a society free from corruption and moral decadence.
Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa was born on August 21, 1936. He is a leftist politician in the mold of Late Mallam Aminu Kano, the exponent of Talakawa politics, which was devoted to the emancipation of the poor from ignorance and poverty. He was founding member of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) initiated by Mallam Aminu Kano and become one of Kano’s most committed disciple. While other disciples of Aminu Kano, like the Late Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, former Governor of Kano state and the incumbent governor of Jigawa state, Alhaji Sule Lamido among others abandoned the left or the progressives in search of greener pastures by hobnobbing with the rent seekers, Musa has been very consistent. Unshakable in his resolve that, even with the proverbial long spoon one can never be free from contamination while sharing the same meal with the devil. An event that happened in 1979 showed clearly that Musa is a man who abhors corruption and will not want to be tainted by it in any shape or form.
Musa was elected governor of Kaduna state in 1979 on the platform of the PRP. The dominant National Party of Nigeria (NPN) challenged his election unsuccessfully. As a governor he was stalemated by the Kaduna state house of assembly, which was dominated by NPN members. He was unable to form a cabinet since he refused to nominate NPN members and the House refused to ratify his candidates.
Eventually, the House impeached him in June 1981, making him the first Nigerian state governor ever to be impeached. It should be quickly noted that other governors impeached after him were confirmed thieves. He was impeached for his honesty, integrity and uprightness by NPN politicians whom such lofty ideals meant nothing to. Musa was avoiding the corruption tendency of the NPN, which explained why he stubbornly refused to admit them to his cabinet. On hindsight, it could be said that Musa was able to see through the NPN what the nation and the military eventually saw about the rapacious NPN that was eventually kicked out by the military in 1984.
But for his impeachment, Musa wanted to make Kaduna an economic model. It was the capitalists in the House that engineered his removal from government house in order to protect their narrow economic interest. Musa was impeached, according to the elder statesman, himself, because he planned to have the state open small-and medium sized industries, and the NPN saw this as a project that would deny them the opportunity of establishing their own enterprises.
Musa has continued to be active in politics and is currently the leader of the PRP and the chairman of the Conference of Nigeria political parties (CNPP). He was the PRP candidate for the presidency in April 2003 elections. Selected in February 2003, Musa was without enough money to buy posters, so his campaign was unsuccessful at a time that politics has become cash and carry.
Speaking as chairman of CNPP in 2004, Musa described President Olusegun Obasanjo’s policies as “Phantom and Mirage”, doing nothing for the people and serving only to enrich politicians and government officials. In the 2007 election, the CNPP backed General Muhammadu Buhari as a credible alternative to the PDP candidate Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. In 2009 Musa warned that “capitalism is returning us to the era of slavery. The solution to the current crisis is the abolition of greediness and antagonistic competition in our economic system.”
He has led campaigns against electoral malpractices while noting that “we need a revolution in Nigeria to have a positive change in our political system.” He described Nigeria’ economic system as based on narrow self interest, with a disabling level of corruption, theft and waste of public resources. He has also expressed concern that Nigeria could become a failed state like Somalia, but noted that the country’s only saving grace for now was the fact that the USA is not likely to allow Nigeria to fail , due to the country’s strategic interest to the Obama country.
Balarabe Musa, political activist par excellence, was at the forefront of the campaign by eminent Nigerians to stop the third term agenda of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He was among the elder statesmen that piled up pressure on the then National Assembly that culminated to the death of the third term project.
Though not a PDP member, he has lend his voice with other concerned Nigerians for the party to respect its power sharing arrangement that presently rests the presidency of the country in the North till 2015. He has severally warned that president Goodluck Jonathan’s distortion of the zoning arrangement in the PDP could led to crisis. Not that he liked the brand of politics being played by the PDP, but as a man always on the side of the truth, justice and fairness, he could not understand why the PDP would decide to rotate power between the North and South and the South has had its turn and when it was the turn of the North, some desperate politicians wants to short change the North.
The ever active and restless politician, he has made his position clear: General Muhammadu Buhari of the CPC is the man he has identified that has the moral fiber to led the country aright in 2011. He is leading a group of several political parties who are forming alliance to ensure a Buhari victory at the 2011 presidential elections.
This selfless politician who has been in politics, not for financial reward, but for the greater good of the majority, is a hero of democracy and champion of the welfare of the downtrodden. The time has come for a grateful nation to thank the likes of Balarabe Musa and send them on well deserved retirement like Nelson Mandelas and Desmond Tutus of this world. This can only be possible when our leaders put the people first before their own selfish interest. Until then, no retirement for Musa and others who cannot afford to sit on the fence while the country dangerously drift to the abyss.
Irrepressible opposition leader, Alhaji Balarabe Musa is one of Nigeria’s great minds that have committed their lives to the quest for an egalitarian society where the downtrodden are paid special attention in order to lift them up from poverty.
In a country where most of the leaders are rent seekers, Musa stands out as a man of integrity, honour and totally devoted to the building of a society free from corruption and moral decadence.
Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa was born on August 21, 1936. He is a leftist politician in the mold of Late Mallam Aminu Kano, the exponent of Talakawa politics, which was devoted to the emancipation of the poor from ignorance and poverty. He was founding member of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) initiated by Mallam Aminu Kano and become one of Kano’s most committed disciple. While other disciples of Aminu Kano, like the Late Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, former Governor of Kano state and the incumbent governor of Jigawa state, Alhaji Sule Lamido among others abandoned the left or the progressives in search of greener pastures by hobnobbing with the rent seekers, Musa has been very consistent. Unshakable in his resolve that, even with the proverbial long spoon one can never be free from contamination while sharing the same meal with the devil. An event that happened in 1979 showed clearly that Musa is a man who abhors corruption and will not want to be tainted by it in any shape or form.
Musa was elected governor of Kaduna state in 1979 on the platform of the PRP. The dominant National Party of Nigeria (NPN) challenged his election unsuccessfully. As a governor he was stalemated by the Kaduna state house of assembly, which was dominated by NPN members. He was unable to form a cabinet since he refused to nominate NPN members and the House refused to ratify his candidates.
Eventually, the House impeached him in June 1981, making him the first Nigerian state governor ever to be impeached. It should be quickly noted that other governors impeached after him were confirmed thieves. He was impeached for his honesty, integrity and uprightness by NPN politicians whom such lofty ideals meant nothing to. Musa was avoiding the corruption tendency of the NPN, which explained why he stubbornly refused to admit them to his cabinet. On hindsight, it could be said that Musa was able to see through the NPN what the nation and the military eventually saw about the rapacious NPN that was eventually kicked out by the military in 1984.
But for his impeachment, Musa wanted to make Kaduna an economic model. It was the capitalists in the House that engineered his removal from government house in order to protect their narrow economic interest. Musa was impeached, according to the elder statesman, himself, because he planned to have the state open small-and medium sized industries, and the NPN saw this as a project that would deny them the opportunity of establishing their own enterprises.
Musa has continued to be active in politics and is currently the leader of the PRP and the chairman of the Conference of Nigeria political parties (CNPP). He was the PRP candidate for the presidency in April 2003 elections. Selected in February 2003, Musa was without enough money to buy posters, so his campaign was unsuccessful at a time that politics has become cash and carry.
Speaking as chairman of CNPP in 2004, Musa described President Olusegun Obasanjo’s policies as “Phantom and Mirage”, doing nothing for the people and serving only to enrich politicians and government officials. In the 2007 election, the CNPP backed General Muhammadu Buhari as a credible alternative to the PDP candidate Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. In 2009 Musa warned that “capitalism is returning us to the era of slavery. The solution to the current crisis is the abolition of greediness and antagonistic competition in our economic system.”
He has led campaigns against electoral malpractices while noting that “we need a revolution in Nigeria to have a positive change in our political system.” He described Nigeria’ economic system as based on narrow self interest, with a disabling level of corruption, theft and waste of public resources. He has also expressed concern that Nigeria could become a failed state like Somalia, but noted that the country’s only saving grace for now was the fact that the USA is not likely to allow Nigeria to fail , due to the country’s strategic interest to the Obama country.
Balarabe Musa, political activist par excellence, was at the forefront of the campaign by eminent Nigerians to stop the third term agenda of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He was among the elder statesmen that piled up pressure on the then National Assembly that culminated to the death of the third term project.
Though not a PDP member, he has lend his voice with other concerned Nigerians for the party to respect its power sharing arrangement that presently rests the presidency of the country in the North till 2015. He has severally warned that president Goodluck Jonathan’s distortion of the zoning arrangement in the PDP could led to crisis. Not that he liked the brand of politics being played by the PDP, but as a man always on the side of the truth, justice and fairness, he could not understand why the PDP would decide to rotate power between the North and South and the South has had its turn and when it was the turn of the North, some desperate politicians wants to short change the North.
The ever active and restless politician, he has made his position clear: General Muhammadu Buhari of the CPC is the man he has identified that has the moral fiber to led the country aright in 2011. He is leading a group of several political parties who are forming alliance to ensure a Buhari victory at the 2011 presidential elections.
This selfless politician who has been in politics, not for financial reward, but for the greater good of the majority, is a hero of democracy and champion of the welfare of the downtrodden. The time has come for a grateful nation to thank the likes of Balarabe Musa and send them on well deserved retirement like Nelson Mandelas and Desmond Tutus of this world. This can only be possible when our leaders put the people first before their own selfish interest. Until then, no retirement for Musa and others who cannot afford to sit on the fence while the country dangerously drift to the abyss.
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