Why Ex -Governor, Gabriel Suswam May Never Be Elected Senator

By Chir Msugh Iorwase Armstrong

Kwande, Ushongo, Konshisha, Vandeikya, Kastina-Ala, Ukum and Logo local government Areas constitute the political bloc known as "Zone A, Senatorial District".

Past and current political events in the state shows that this bloc is the most powerful, influential and complicated bloc among the other blocs namely; Zone B and Zone C.

Zone A has retain the status of the only political bloc in the state that has never given any of her son/daughter absolute political power and control over her unlike the other zones, say zone B, in the first republic the people of Zone B accorded late Sen. J.S. Tarkaa immense power and influence, Tarkaa's influence use to bear on every nook and cranny of Zone B, his decision become law amongst his people when democracy re-incept in 1999 the political bloc called Zone B, was given an opportunity to produce the Governor and Senator George Akume was elected.

Sen. Akume came in and the bloc stood with him, to many people sen. Akume is seen as a replacement of Late J.S Tarkaa. Akume have inserted enormous influence in the bloc deciding who get what and what get to where.

The practical example of what I am say was seen in the 2011 general elections where the powers of the incumbency stood and rose against Senator George Akume. Rt. Hon. Gabriel Suswam who was the pilot of the ship fail 360 degrees to oust the former minority leader because his people trusted him, they overwhelmingly made him their leader and couldn't stand to see him fail nor fall, today Akume is waxing more stronger even though he is not adjudged the best representative of his people, nonetheless the people of Zone B have always come together to stand in for him when the going gets tougher.

In Zone C, the Ortukpo born general has retain the portfolio of the leader of the zone, defiling the zoning formula of the PDP at several occasions, therefore making it to the upper legislative house since 1999 to date. Just take a look at the way and manner the people of zone C stood in for Sen. David Mark in the last senatorial rerun that recently took place.

In Zone A, where the immediate past Governor, Dr. Gabriel Suswam came from has never made anybody their political leader. The zone tried it a couple of years ago, when Paul Unongo was tested, at a point the people of Zone A were listening to Unongo until he miss steps and been a zone that is very complicated and at the same time fragile the zone gave him an upper cut and up till now the former minister is nowhere near the corridors of power.

Zone A have the Gamades, Shuluwas, the Sarors, Shahuus, all these names carry along with them certain magnitude of influence but their influence can not and have never reflected on the entire political bloc called "Zone A" we have seen all these people struggle to install council chairmen in their respective local government and at times they end up not achieving their targets.

It is indeed crystal clear that nobody in Zone A has the political power or will that bear on the entire zone, oh what a complicated zone!

When Suswam eventually emerged, many felt he will rise to that occasion considering the office he occupied and the ill gotten wealth he amass for himself. Nobody on earth believe the former Governor will not make it to the Senate, especially as he was still the sitting Governor and as it is the Nigerian culture that winners take it all, he however failed woefully.

The complicity and fragility of the Zone A is what I seem not to understand myself.

Why was Suswam never allowed access to the senate?

If the whole sitting Governor couldn't subdue the people of Zone A, then the Zone truly is complex and tough.

If  Suswam wasn't given a chance to go to the senate when he was still the Governor, then I see no possibility of Suswam making it to the senate come 2019, moreover the zone's senatorial slot is given to the people of Kwande.

And if the people of Kwande eventually go home with their senate slot come 2019, there is little or no chances for Dr. Suswam in 2023, by this analysis I see no possibility of the former Governor, Rt. Hon. Gabriel Suswam, PhD, CON sitting in the red chamber in the near future.

I want to conclude by advising the former Governor, Dr. Suswam to never allow himself to be deceived by praise singers around him to contest for senate in the next round of elections, because there is no possibility for him to win, everything is standing against him even the electorates won't vote for him the way it happened in the last election where he was publicly disgraced at the polls.