Engr. Musa Nashuni
Since the name of Engr. Musa Nashuni started making the rounds as the anointed candidate of Governor Ibrahim Shema for 2015, people have been trying to unmask the said candidate giving his low profile in the political scene of the state.
Though Shema has kept politicians in the state in suspense over the years on who will succeed him, it became clear in recent weeks when the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) started selling forms for the various elective positions open for contest in 2015, that the governor may have decided to settle for Engr. Nashuni as his anointed successor.
This, to many, is not surprising given their long standing relationship.
Nashuni is said to have been chosen having worked for long in the Shema cabinet and is said to understand the workings of the government.
This is in addition to the fact that he is from Kankia local government of Katsina State which is strategic in the quest for power shift in the state.
His being from Kankia gives him an added advantage that the Shema administration is trying to capitalise on due to the growing agitation for power shift in the state. Kankia, politically is situated in Katsina North, that is the Daura zone which has never produced a governor since the creation of the state.
But traditionally, Kankia falls under the Katsina emirate which is the hub of Katsina Central that has held power in the state for the past 25 years as all those that have governed the state even since it was in the old Kaduna State, are from the zone. The fact that Nashuni can claim to be from both zones has given the Shema administration an edge to insist on Nashuni.
But aside that, he is believed to be among the best of brains in the cabinet having graduated with a first class from Camborne School of Mines in the United Kingdom. He equally holds a Masters Degree from Queens University Kingston, Ontario, in Mining Engineering.
Nashuni has been in the cabinet of Governor Shema since he was appointed special adviser to Shema on resource development in August 2007. He was later elevated to the post of Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transport in August 2010 before moving to the Ministry of Resource Development, a position he held until he was drafted into the gubernatorial race.
Of the eight PDP candidates vying for the governorship in 2015, Nashuni is relatively unknown having worked behind the scenes even as special adviser and commissioner in the seven years he has been in government.
Nashuni is seen as a neophyte politically as he has all this while kept a low profile.
But his being a commissioner is said to be in line with the tradition of succession in the state as Shema was a commissioner in the cabinet of Yar’adua, so the emergence of Nashuni from the cabinet is seen as following the footsteps earlier started by the late president when he was a governor in the state.
Already, Nashuni is becoming a brand name in Katsina with his image now on display on many sign posts and bill boards at strategic locations across the state.
It is believed that to help him realise his ambition, political experts have been drafted into his campaign team to sell him to the electorate ahead of the general elections as the PDP primary, according to some of his close associates, is a forgotten issue.
His supporters say their main concern is the general election where they expect opposition from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Nashuni attended Nuhu Primary School from 1961 to 1967 then Barewa College Zaria from 1968 to 1977 before proceeding to Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria from 1973 to 1974 all before his educational sojourn in Europe. He believes that good governance is achieved when people are involved in designing and implementing government policies and projects.
His working experience before joining government dates back to 1980 with the Nigerian Mining Corporation where he served in various capacities and rose through the ranks, from Assistant Project Manager in 1980 to Executive Director (Mining) between 1991-1999 were he was responsible for the supervision of all the corporation’s mining companies.
The calibre of personalities that attended his submission of forms at the PDP headquarters shows that already he has started falling into main stream politics.
They include the Speaker of the state Assembly, Umar Yau Gwajo-Gwajo, the governor’s Chief of Staff, Salisu Majigiri, DG of SMEDAN, Umar Masari, members of the state assembly and council of the state, and some PDP officials who said they were there in their personal capacities to show support.
This Article was posted on the Web of Daily Trust.
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