by Muhammad Ibrahim

 

It is quite sad to see a man who was once described as ‘the choice of the people’ being vilified by the very same people who once sang his praises.

Since his inauguration as a member of the Federal House of Representatives, Hon. Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki has gradually become the most maligned political figure in Gombe State despite emerging from the most elite of all parties in the state, the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC).

Khamisu Ahmed, fondly referred to as Mailantarki, has been the subject of strong criticism by both the elite and masses despite the many progressive schemes he has initiated in his constituency – Gombe, Kwami, and Funakaye Federal constituency.

Hon. Mailantarki emerged victorious in the 2011 polls despite all odds when he contested against a former president of ALGON, then chairman of Gombe Local Government Area, and in-law to Governor Danjuma Goje, in the person of Ibrahim Dasuki Jalo. So challenging was his quest to represent his constituency that many thought the young man would have been better off withdrawing from the race.

Hon. Khamisu Ahmed, however, got off on a popular footing with his people due to his visionary prospects and the general apathy towards the PDP, and although he was not as politically influential or financially capable as his opponent, he was able to draw a larger crowd of supporters than even the governor himself. On the eve of elections, the most influential figure in Northern politics, General Muhammadu Buhari, also visited Gombe in order to throw his weight behind his candidacy. The PDP tried in vain, but his ambition proved unstoppable. The unprecedented turn-out was one that had never before been witnessed in Gombe state.

When the election results were announced, Hon. Khamisu emerged victorious with a whopping 122,798 votes – the highest in the House of Representatives elections. No other member of the House of Representatives won by such a high margin in the 2011 polls. This landslide victory further served to convince all and sundry that Honourable Khamisu Ahmed was truly a man of the people, who had all that was necessary to repel and nullify the usual tricks deployed by the PDP in an attempt to win elections at all costs.

Upon being given his certificate of return and being sworn in as a member of the Federal House of Representatives, he vowed to ensure transparency and dedicated the victory to those who had lost their lives and properties while trying to protect their votes during the course of the election. He went further to say that he was extremely happy for being given such a mandate and pledged to use his constituency allowance judiciously for the interest of his people, and not for selfish purposes.

As soon as he resumed office, work started in earnest. Till date, he remains answerable to his people, even including those in the opposition. His home is always filled with people, especially the poor masses, and he never leaves his premises until each and every one of them has been attended to.

In fulfilling his promise to tackle the problem of epileptic power supply in his constituency, he donated and installed a brand new 500 KVA transformer to the people of Pantami West community in Pantami ward in Gombe Local Government after receiving several requests from people of that area. He also donated a generator set to the Gombe Orphanage Home being managed by the Da’wah and Counselling Council of the state.
As a visionary leader, he took into cognisance the educational challenge in the North, and has so far paid the WAEC, NECO, JAMB, and NABTEB fees for over 250 students in his constituency. He has also donated not less than 20,000 exercise books to different schools in order to aid teaching and learning activities in his constituency.

In order to alleviate the challenge posed by the scarcity of water in some areas in his constituency, he aslo donated One Hundred and Fifty Million Naira to the Three Billion Naira Gombe Water Project – more than any other politician in Gombe state.  Also, solar-powered boreholes have been sunk in villages such as Sangaru in Bajoga East ward, Abuja-Bula in Komfulata Ward, Tongo, and a myriad of other areas.
As a man in touch with his people, he has also tried to combat unemployment by enrolling about 100 youths in his constituency into the military and paramilitary schemes. He also helped many university graduates to secure employment in various government parastatals and other agencies in Abuja, irrespective of whether these youths belong to the opposition or not.

To solve the transportation problem, brand new vehicles have been distributed to some people, while farmers in rural areas have been given bicycles, and donations of tricycles have been made to the disabled in order to meet their socio-economic challenges.

Last year, Hon. Khamisu also sponsored members of his constituency on lesser Hajj often referred to as Umrah, and others were also later sent on Hajj. Those who benefitted from this comprised mainly of the elderly and less priviledged, who would otherwise have been unable to afford the trip on their own.

Despite all his efforts at improving the standard of living of his people, however, he seems to have fallen out of their good books, and hardly will politics be discussed in Gombe state without insults and snide remarks being thrown at him. His facebook page is testimony enough to this. What one finds so surprising is that he is so very humble and approachable, yet his people are dissatisfied with him.

It is quite sad to see a man who was once described as ‘the choice of the people’ being vilified by the very same people who once sang his praises.

It’s painful to note that in this age and time where we truly ought to eschew materialistic politics for a more pragmatic form, people still seem to prefer the former and condemn those who would rather ensure that they see and enjoy the true dividends of democracy.

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Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.