Prominent lieutenants of President Muhammadu Buhari have contested and lost the recently concluded governorship and National Assembly primary elections conducted by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) across the country.
Many of the notable stalwarts who were earlier believed would have smooth sailing at the primaries, only came down crashing despite their closeness to the President.
This development marked a major upset in the Buhari political circle.
Below are some of the aspirants and how they lost out at the primaries in the respective states.
Sha’aban Sharada
Sha’aban Ibrahim Sharada was a Personal Assistant to President Muhamadu Buhari on broadcast.
He has unfettered access to the Presidential Villa through Buhari’s powerful Personal Assistant Tunde Sabiu.
He later contested and won the House Representatives seat for Kano Municipal in 2019.
He parted ways with Governor Abdullahi Ganduje and formed the G-7 faction of the APC.
Mr Sharada was one of the frontline contenders for the APC governorship ticket in Kano State ahead of the 2023 election.
However, he lost to Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, the State’s deputy governor in the primary held on Thursday with a wide margin.
He polled 30 votes, while Gawuna got 2,289 to emerge winner.
Fatuhu Muhammad
Fatuhu Muhammad, a nephew of President Muhammadu Buhari, is a two-term member of the House of Representatives.
He is one of the sons of President Buhari’s elder sister.
Despite being Buhari’s family member, he lost the bid to represent Daura/Mai’Adua/Sandamu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives.
His opponent, Aminu Jamo polled 117 votes to beat Fatuhu, who got only 30.
Turad Sani Sha’aban
Turad Sani Sha’aban is married to Buhari’s daughter, Hanan.
He is the son of Sani Sha’aban, an APC governorship aspirant in the state.
Mr Turad contested the Kaduna North senatorial district primary election APC held in Zaria on Saturday.
The contest was between Turad, the incumbent Senator Suleman Abdu Kwari and Haliru Ibrahim.
The poll ended with Turad scoring zero votes.
Farouk Adamu Aliyu
Farouk Adamu Aliyu has been a key President Muhammadu Buhari ally since the ANPP days. He is believed to be among the influencers within the government circle.
He was a member of the House of Representatives representing the Birnin Kudu/Buji federal constituency in the House of Representatives between 2003 and 2007.
During his sojourn in the lower chamber on the platform of All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), he was the Minority Leader.
However, he came a distant 5th in the just-concluded APC primary in his home state, Jigawa in an exercise in which he was tagged a frontrunner.
While the poll winner, Umar Namadi, the incumbent deputy governor, polled 2022 votes, Aliyu got 13.
Bashir Ahmad
Bashir Ahmad, Personal Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on New Media and Digital Communication, is believed to be among the key lieutenants who has the president’s ears.
When he declared for the Gaya/Ajingi/Albasu federal constituency of Kano State seat, many assumed the race would be a walkover even though the incumbent member representing the area in the House of Representatives, Mahmud Gaya is firmly on ground.
Earlier in May, Ahmad resigned his position as presidential aide following a directive by the president for appointees with political ambition to do so.
However, Ahmad lost the APC ticket, polling just 16 votes against Mahmud’s 106.
Sani Sha’aban
Sani Sha’aban, a politician and businessman, was a member of the Nigerian House of Representatives representing Zaria federal constituency from May 2003 to May 2007.
His son, Turad is married to President Buhari’s daughter, Hanan.
Despite being the President’s in-law, the former lawmaker could only muster 10 votes in the just-concluded APC’s governorship primary in Kaduna State out of the 1,196 votes casted during the exercise.
The senator representing Kaduna Central, Uba Sani polled 1,149 votes to emerge winner of the poll.
Nuhu Ribadu
Nuhu Ribadu, the pioneer Executive Chairman of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and an ally of the APC national leader, Bola Tinubu lost the APC governorship primary in Adamawa State to Senator Aisha Binani, a female senator.
He got 288 votes against Binani’s 430 in the race the ex-police officer was highly favoured to win, especially going by his experience in politics.
Mr Ribadu contested for the presidency on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in 2011.
He defected to the then ruling party PDP with the intention to vie for the governorship of his home state in 2014 and lost.
Ahmad Rufai Zakari
Ahmad Rufai Zakari was the Special Adviser to the President on Infrastructure.
He is the son of former acting INEC chairman, Mrs Amina Zakari, Buhari’s step sister from Kazaure.
He contested for the APC governorship ticket in Jigawa State but also lost to the incumbent deputy governor of the state, Umar Namadi.
Mr Zakari had a dismal outing during the primary with no vote to his credit.
Folajimi Mohammed
Folajimi, son of Information and Culture Minister, Lai Mohammed is the lawmaker representing Ikeja 1 constituency in the Lagos State House of Assembly.
He has served as lawmaker in the state assembly for two consecutive terms.
However, he lost the House of Representatives bid to Seyi Lawal, who secured the ticket after polling 15 votes to defeat Folajimi at the just-concluded APC primary.
Ismaeel Ahmed
Ismaeel Buba Ahmed is Buhari’s SSA on Social Investments. He was a former National Youth Leader of APC.
He contested the Kano Central senatorial primary alongside Senator Bashir Lado and Abdulkarim Zaura.
Mr Ahmed pulled out from the race a few minutes before the election began leaving the contest between Lado and Zaura.
At the end of the election, Zaura, backed by Governor Abdullahi Ganduje polled 758 votes to defeat Lado who polled only 70 votes.
