Binani: Audacious Bid of a Charismatic Amazon
Binani: Audacious Bid of a Charismatic Amazon
Some leaders are born, others are made. Binani (full name Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed) is a born leader imbued with necessary panache, aura and swagger. With her genre, inspirational leadership flows naturally and easily. That explains why not a few pundits across political divides insist that her reign in Adamawa is only suspended and is destined to happen in the closest foreseeable future, 2027 in the maximum, based on the benevolent will of Almighty Allah. In other words, the 2027 governorship contest in the state may turn out to be a Binani versus Binani affair with the government governorship stool beckoning on her after the expiration of Ahmadu Fintiri’s ultimate tenure.
It was Michelle Obama, ex-First Lady of the United States who popularised the “glass ceiling” metaphor through an epochal speech she made in July 2016 while campaigning for Hilary Clinton, the Democratic candidate in the 2016 US presidential election. Indeed, shattering the gender barrier in governorship election remains a tough Gordian knot in many parts of the world, including Nigeria and especially northern Nigeria.
Today, seven years down the lane after Mrs Obama’s statement, Binani, despite the momentary setback following her narrow loss in the epic gubernatorial race, is still poised to be the first female politician to break that impenetrable, the seemingly invisible barrier in Africa’s most populous country.
The Adamawa-born politician is a woman of many firsts; climbing the political leadership ladder higher from one step to another with solid gait and poise. She is assuredly stepping up to deservedly take the mantle of leadership in the state. But that will likely be preceded by a further stint in Abuja on a higher federal appointive position. With the name Binani gaining more traction across the state and the nation the question begs an answer: Who is this rare Amazon stamping her footprints on the sand of time and what is her mojo?
THE BINANI BIOGRAPHY
Aishatu Binani was born on August 11, 1971, in Adamawa State into a very politically active family. Her father was a local government chairman, and her mother was a teacher.
She began her primary school education in Kaduna State and finished it at Gwadabawa Primary school, Yola, Adamawa State. She attended a government secondary school in Yola. Binani then proceeded to the Federal Polytechnic Mubi, Adamawa State. She also obtained a diploma in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southampton, England. Senator (Engineer) Binani is currently a distinguished lawmaker and full swing politician in Nigeria who narrowly lost the March 18 governorship election in Adamawa State to incumbent Governor Fintiri.
BINANI’S SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS CAREER
For decades prior to her foray into politics, Binani was an entrepreneur and a talented businesswoman. Binani is the founder of the Binani Group of Companies. The company is a diversified business conglomerate that includes pharmaceuticals, property, oil and gas, construction, publishing, telecommunications, and banking.
The Binani company is a successful conglomerate that is climbing the success ladder very fast. In July 2020, the Binani Group of Companies launched the first airline to be owned by a woman in Nigeria – Binani Air. The Adamawa State-based airline runs through Yola-Lagos, Maiduguri, Port Harcourt, Kano, Gombe, and Bauchi routes, among others.
Having succeeded in establishing her legacy in the private sector, Binani decided to leap into the Nigerian political space and she has been doing well. She has had a long and successful career in politics. She took her first political steps in 2011 as a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). She later defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Charismatic Binani was elected firstly as a member of the House of Representatives in 2011 and a Senator in 2019. She is taking giant political steps as she came very close to making history as the first democratically elected female governor in Nigeria. As the Adamawa State governorship candidate for the APC in the March 18, 2023 general election, she almost turned the apple cart to beat a male incumbent.
BINANI: A QUINTESSENTIAL LAWMAKER
Under the umbrella panoply of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Binani was elected as a House of Representatives member to represent Yola North/Yola South/Girei federal constituency in 2015. With her election, she became a member of the seventh National Assembly and served in office till 2015.
In 2015, Binani left the PDP and defected to the APC, which became the ruling party following its victory in the 2015 general election. In the 2019 general elections, she clinched the ticket of the APC for the Adamawa Central Senatorial zone. She subsequently emerged as the winner of the election and was sworn in as the senator representing Adamawa Central Senatorial zone in the ninth National Assembly. She served as the Chairperson Senate Committee on Sustainable Development Goals.
BINANI BILLS
Among many bills Binani sponsored or co-sponsored while in the Upper Chambers are:
- Modibo Adama University of Technology (Establishment etc) Bill
- Fiscal Responsibility Commission (Establishment etc) Bill, 1999 Constitution (Alteration) Bill
- National Dermatology Specialist Hospital, Garkida, Adamawa State (Establishment etc) Bill
- Federal Medical Centre, Yola (Establishment etc) Bill
- Modibo Adama University Yola Teaching Hospital (Establishment) Bill
- Federal Medical Centre Mubi, Adamawa State (Establishment etc) Bill
- University Teaching Hospital (Reconstitution Of Board) Act (Amendment) Bill
- Criminal Code Act (Amendment) Bill
BINANI’S TRAIL-BLAZING RACE
March 16, 2022 will go down as a milestone in the political history of not just Adamawa State but Northern Nigeria and the country as a whole. On that date, at Muna Hotel Jimeta in Yola, Binani declared her intention to contest in the 2023 Adamawa gubernatorial election. At the unveiling of her governorship bid, she made this poignant statement about Adamawa State
“Despite all abundant human and natural resources, our state sadly ranks 25th out of 36 states in the human capital development index”.
Enigmatic Binani on that occasion vowed to address and work in concert with relevant stakeholders towards enhancing the ranking of her state to a more befitting position on the national scale. She became the first female governorship candidate of a ruling political party at the centre, the APC for Adamawa state. She did so by chalking 430 votes to defeat her closest contender, the respected pioneer Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and former presidential candidate, Nuhu Ribadu who got 280 votes during the APC gubernatorial primary in the state. Binani’s stellar performance as a senator and in other fields she had traversed did the magic for her. He teeming supporters want her to replicate the Midas touch as governor.
FAMILY BACKGROUND
Aishatu Binani was born into the family of Alhaji Dahiru and Hajiya Aishatu Utiya Dahiru, both devout Muslims. Her mother passed on December 10, 2020.
Aishatu Binani’s father, Alhaji Dahiru, was a local government chairman. Seeing how well his daughter turned out, especially when it comes to leading and creating a legacy, one can say that her father was a huge inspiration for her.
MARITAL LIFE
Binani& husband
Binani is married to Professor Ahmed Modibbo, a thoroughbred professor of History who has authored over 116 seminar and conference journal papers. Professor Modibbo is a thoroughbred Professor of History with over one hundred and sixteen seminar/conference/journal papers to his credit. This is in addition to him being an accomplished educator, historian, and seasoned intellectual.
Modibbo was a former Director and Chief Executive of the Universal Basic Education Commission. Born 15 May 1954 in Yola, Adamawa State, he attended Lokuwa Primary School, Mubi (1961 – 1966); St. Paul’s College Wusasa, Zaria (1967 – 1971); Government Secondary School, Maiduguri (1972 – 1973); Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (1973 – 1976); University of Abertay, Dundee (2000); Havard University Extension School/Galilee College (2002) among others. Binani and Modibbo are blessed with five lovely children.
BINANI’S AGE
Aishatu Binani was born on August 11, 1971. She is currently 51 years old and will be 52 years old by August 2023.
With her fast-paced climbing of the political ladder, Binani can be said to be one of the most experienced politicians in Nigeria. She has a long and successful political career and is focused on taking Adamawa State to a better place. She is an example of what women can achieve when they are allowed to do so devoid of stultifying gender and cultural barriers.