DANJUMA GOJE: BETRAYAL OF ATIKU
BY USMAN GARBA SANTURAKI
WROTE IN FROM NO 74 TAFIDA STREET,
JIMETA-YOLA.

Aug 23, 2006

The recent statement credited to the Governor of
Gombe State as to the political aspiration of the
Vice-President Atiku Abubakar that he does not take in
the Governors of the North-East except the Governor of
his home state Gov. Boni Haruna is really the greatest
betrayal of Gov. Danjuma Goje who the Vice-President
made it possible for him to become a Governor in the
2003 election.
If not, for Atiku, Danjuma Goje would not become the
present Governor of Gombe for the simple fact that he
doesn’t have the political clout to defeat a sitting
Governor like Abubakar Hashidu in 2003. But upon all
what Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has done to him in
his entire life time, today, Gov. Goje is paying him
back by shifting his loyalty. I recalled my visit to
Gov. Danjuma Goje together with Alh. A.B. Gayus the
National President of Nigerian Youths in Politics
Association in his personal house just before the
elections of 2003 where he told us about his chummy
relationship with the Vice-President Atiku he said ”
If Atiku will tell me to drop my ambition, I will drop
it today”.
The antecedents of Gov. Danjuma Goje betrayal did not
start with Vice-President Atiku if one recalled with
nostalgia on what he do to his mentor and whom he
served as Personal Assistant Alh. Mohammed Ibrahim
Hassan the former Minister of Mines and Power during
the regime of civilian administration of Alh. Shehu
Shagari when he was incarcerated by the Gen. Buhari
led administration that led to marrying the former
Minister’s wife.
It is also in order to bring it out to the gullible
public that Vice-President Atiku was instrumental to
Gov. Goje becoming a Minister of State and it is based
on this, that he paid what was tagged a “thank you”
visit to Adamawa State to thank the entire people of
Adamawa State for what Vice-President Atiku has done
to him by nominating him and subsequently becoming a
Minister. At the Yola International Hotel where he
express his appreciation on what Vice-President Atiku
has done to him he made a donation of one million
(1m) naira to the state executive of the PDP under
Chief Joel Madaki receiving Five hundred thousand
(500,000.00) naira and the Chairmen of the PDP in the
twenty-one (21) Local Governments in Adamawa State
receiving the balance of Five hundred thousand
(500,000.00).
Even, the person that made it possible for him to come
close to the Vice-President Alh. Babawuro Barambu the
former Chairman of PDP in Gombe has being betrayed by
Gov. Danjuma Goje
On the day for the election of Governors in the 2003
the Vice-President Atiku after casting his vote left
Yola by road to Gombe to take charge in the collation
of the results that would be coming from the various
Local Governments of Gombe and to the ensure the
success of Danjuma Goje. The Vice-President Atiku does
this by using his energy and financial resources by
footing the campaign expenses of Gov. Danjuma Goje.
Also, it is because of the Vice-President Atiku’s
political sagacity that Goje was able to clinched the
party’s ticket at the primaries of the PDP as it would
be a difficult task for him to have defeated Malam
Murtala Aliyu as the Gubernatorial candidate of  the
PDP in Gombe State.
The Vice-President Atiku is a very accommodating
person and that is why he accommodates Goje as member
of his political family once he was introduced to him
by Alh. Babawuro Barambu who is Atiku’s strong
political pillar in Gombe.
Gov. Danjuma’s loyalty starts shaking during the
recent PDP revalidation of members register that he
shifts his loyalty to Obasanjo so that the party’s
ticket for 2007 would be put on him by the President
by imposing him for re-election in 2007 for another
four year term.
Initially, a lot of people believes that Gov. Danjuma
Goje is one of the principled die-hard supporters of
the Vice-President Atiku that are ever ready to stand
behind him come rain come shine. But his recent
outburst portrayed him as one of the enemies of
Vice-President Atiku and he is what the Hausas say
“kaza ci ke goge baki”literally means chicken eat and
cleans the mouth.
A friend of mine who works with Gov. Goje at the then
National Electorate Commission once told me in the
course of our discussion on the political terrain of
this country that Gov. Danjuma Goje is not a trusted
person that Vice-President Atiku could so much invest
on him as there is the likelihood that he may betray
him and today, my friend have being vindicated as what
Gov. Goje is doing in order to thwart the chances of
Vice-President is quite inimical to somebody that
embrace him as junior brother like what was done to
Goje by Vice-President Atiku.
A lot has be said to the Vice-President about the
caliber of people that he trust-giving them absolute
trust as in the case of Gov. Goje that some would
betray him didn’t go into his head because he is a man
that risk trusting people so easily even a foe.